Space Technologies for the Sustainable Development of Natural and Cultural Heritage Sites

A special issue of Heritage (ISSN 2571-9408).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2020)

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
1. Key Laboratory of Digital Earth Science, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100094, China
2. International Research Center of Big Data for Sustainable Development Goals, Beijing 100094, China
Interests: remote sensing for archaeology; risk mapping and sustainable assessment of monuments and archaeo-landscapes; geoarchaeology; interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR); multi-temporal InSAR (MT-InSAR); change detection and time series analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
The State Key Laboratory of Information Engineering in Surveying, Mapping and Remote Sensing (LIESMARS), Wuhan University, Wuhan 430079, China
Interests: SAR remote sensing; SAR interferometry; surface motion estimation; SAR in archaeology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Chinese Academy of Sciences, International Centre on Space Technologies for Natural and Cultural Heritage under the auspices of UNESCO, No. 9 Dengzhuang South Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100094, China
Interests: multi-temporal InSAR (MT-InSAR); space technology for cultural applications

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Guest Editor
Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Chinese Academy of Sciences, International Centre on Space Technologies for Natural and Cultural Heritage under the auspices of UNESCO, No. 9 Dengzhuang South Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100094, China
Interests: multi-temporal InSAR (MT-InSAR); geoarchaeology; time series analysis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue of Heritage aims to gather high-quality original research articles, reviews, and technical notes on the use of space technologies for cultural and natural heritage protection. During the last decades, multiple technologies—including, but not limited, to remote sensing, GIS and geophysical surveying—have been used for the discovery, documentation, monitoring, preservation and visualization of world heritage sites. Nowadays, with the rapid development of Earth observation and computer science, the integrated use of different space technologies tends to be a better solution for heritage studies. This Special Issue will highlight the most recent advances of space technologies applied to world heritage sites, especially using multi-technique approaches integrated by space-borne remote sensing, airborne remote sensing and field investigations. Regarding the discovery, monitoring and management of heritage sites, we expect the next generation of space technology as well as big data approaches and the Belt and Road Initiative to improve efforts for heritage protection. Regarding the need to create a common platform for the conservation of natural and cultural heritage, and arguing that space technology plays an important part in this field, we would like to invite you to submit manuscripts describing methodological/technological developments, experimental research, or case studies, with respect to the above and/or the following topics:

  • Integration of remote sensing and geophysical surveying into archaeology
  • Remote sensing and multi-technique approaches for risk monitoring, evaluation and forecasting for natural and cultural heritage
  • Integration of remote sensing and GIS for the documentation and management of natural and cultural heritage
  • Spatial modelling and GIS applications for cultural resources analysis, monitoring and enhancement
  • Integration of Earth science, humanities and social science for the visualization and virtual reality of cultural heritage
  • Big data for the sustainable development goals

Prof. Fulong Chen
Prof. Timo Balz
Dr. Wei Zhou
Dr. Panpan Tang
Guest Editors

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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8 pages, 2168 KiB  
Technical Note
Assessing Looting from Space: The Destruction of Early Iron Age Burials in Northern Xinjiang
by Gino Caspari
Heritage 2018, 1(2), 320-327; https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage1020021 - 1 Nov 2018
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 6099
Abstract
Burial mounds (kurgans) of the Early Iron Age in the steppe zones of Central Asia have long been the target of severe looting activities. Protection of these monuments in remote areas is difficult since accurate mapping is rarely available. We map an area [...] Read more.
Burial mounds (kurgans) of the Early Iron Age in the steppe zones of Central Asia have long been the target of severe looting activities. Protection of these monuments in remote areas is difficult since accurate mapping is rarely available. We map an area in northern Xinjiang using a combination of high-resolution optical data and on-ground survey to establish a quantitative and qualitative assessment of looting. We find that at least 74.5% of burial mounds are looted or otherwise destroyed. Due to the large number of visibly impacted burial mounds, it becomes clear that the bulk of cultural heritage of the Early Iron Age in this area is under threat. The looting, however, continues until present day. Rescue excavation of potentially untouched burials in the area is advisable. Full article
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