GPR

Ground Penetrating Radar

 Ground Penetrating
Radar (GPR) is a tool
archaeologists will
use more and more
for excavations in
the 21st century.
GPR allows
archaeologists to
survey
archaeological sites
in a short amount of
time with precision
and without digging.
 Basic Principles

Uses radio waves to create picture of

underground before excavation
Picture is used to locate any variations
in the sub-surfaces
 Basic Mechanism

Electrode magnetic waves emitted into

the ground and time measured for wave
to be reflected and received
When wave hits areas of change in soil,
it is hit back to receiver antenna
Changes in soil can include objects
buried underneath the surface
 Greater surface
difference =
Stronger signal
Strong signal has
large amplitude
Weak signal has
small amplitude
Amplitude
wavelength and time
are used to create
image of what is
underground
 RDP
Relative Dielectric Permitivity
RDP is ability of a
material to store and
allow passage of
electromagnetic
energy when a field is
imposed upon it.
RDP of a substance =
electrical permitivity /
vacuum
 C
K
V
K = RDP
C = Speed of
light
V = Velocity of
radar energy
 GPR Depth Determination
D = (5.9t)/sqrt of (Er)
Dielectric constants for common materials
D = depth of target (in)
Air 1
t = wave travel time
Pure water 81
(nanosec)
Fresh water (ice) 4
5.9 = a constant
incorporating speed of light Granite (dry) 5
and unit conversions Clay (saturated) 8-12
Er = dielectric constant of Sand (dry) 4-6
subsurface material Sand (saturated) 30
 Example
How deep below the surface is an
object that is detected at 46 ns in dry
sand (Er = 4)?
Answer:
D = (5.9 x 46) / sqrt (4)
D = 135.7 in
Therefore the object is about 11 ft underground
Equipment
Consists of:
1. control unit
2. display unit
3. transmitting and receiving unit
 Case Studies

Cave of Letters
Bethesaida, Israel
Forum Novum
 Cave of Letters

Site located in Nahal, Hever (a canyon

by the Dead Sea)
GPR was used to map possible
excavation sites in the Cave of Letters
 Artifacts Found

Coins
Clothes
Letters mentioning Jewish leader Bar-
Kokhba who had fought against the
Romans around the middle first century
 Bethesaida, Israel

Located in Northern Israel near the sea

of Galilee
Was an active fishing community 2000
years ago
Site where Jesus healed a blind man
and walked on water
 Overview Movie

http://www.joeinfo.com/gpr/overview.MOV
 Bethsaida Excavation
GPR has tested land for cave locations
Artifacts found:
1. coins (dated as far back as 1st and 2nd Century)
2. childs sandal
3. fabric
4. pottery
5. human bones and remains
 Antenna Movie

http://www.joeinfo.com/gpr/antenna.MOV
 Recently, Dr. Harry Jol, professor of
geography at the University of
Wisconsin - Eau Claire, used GPR to
map an area by the city gates of
Bethsaida
 Vescovio, Italy

Romaneque church of Santa Maria

Remains of marketplace, living
quarters, storage areas, hallways and
door entrances reconstructed visually
 Forum Novum
Remains of marketplace, living
quarters, storage areas, hallways and
door entrances reconstructed visually
Believed to be Roman marketplace
which initially began construction in
the 1st century BC and flourished
through the 4th century AD as the
Roman town of the Forum Novum
 Excavation
British School of Archaeology in Rome have
conducted excavation sites
Sites include:
1. an amphitheatre
2. a bath complex
3. the villa
4. a tomb complex
5. crypts from the 8th to 9th centuries located
behind the church
GPR reading from Forum Novum
 Wrap up

GPR usage has become

more wide-spread

Now used in
construction

Average person can

now purchase GPR
equipment