LIDAR Bathymetry

in very shallow waters

Shachak Pe’eri – CCOM, UNH
William Philpot – Cornell University
 Bathymetric Lidar
• Nd:YAG laser generates pulses
in the infrared (1064 nm) and laser
green (532 nm) simultaneously
detectors

• IR radiation is reflected at the

water surface

• Green light travels through

the water and is reflected by
the water and the bottom

• Green light generates Raman

scattering from water and
fluorescence from bottom
vegetation or phytoplankton
 Water Raman Scattering
Virtual
state

Energy

Rayleigh & Mie Raman

scattering scattering

• Inelastic: emission at a longer wavelength than excitation

• Fixed frequency shift
• For excitation at 532 nm Î emission centered at 647 nm
 Fluorescence

• Inelastic: emission at a longer wavelength than excitation

• For excitation at 532 nm Î emission over a broad
wavelength range, including the red channel
Lidar return signal (lidar waveform)
Received 532nm signal
Total return
amplitude

Surface (interface) return

Detection
points Bottom
return
Volume
backscatter
time
Δt
Raman
backscatter
SHOALS: data for single pulse
SHOALS: data for single pulse
Introduction
 Introduction: Raman Channel Waveform
There are three main components building the Raman
channel waveform: Note: There is no return from
the air-water interface. All of
– "Surface" return (found in all depths). the "surface" Raman return is
from the water volume.
– Vegetation (found in shallow waters
(Philpot and Wang, 2002)
– Water depth (found in shallow waters).

The vegetation contribution "rides" on the surface

waveform.
The water column contribution decreases in power in the
bins after the peak.
 Lake Tahoe
Date of acquisition: July 15 – 19, 2000
Maximum water depth noticed: 2.0-2.1 m
Vegetation under water: No
Geology: lake deposits, and till.
Bathymetry: moderate slope
 Color bathymetry:
Line 50-1
mt000717b • LIDAR (2001)
• Multibeam (Gardner et
al., 1998)
Line 12-1
mt000717f

Line 48-5
mt000718b

Line 57-1
mt000715a
 Basic Red Waveform: depth > 2.0 m
500
Peak

450
Ta 48-5
il
400

350

e
Ris
2
300 2.1
2.2
2.3
250
Head • dependent on water type
• depth independent
200

150

100
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
Shallow-water Red Waveform: depth 1.0 - 2.0 m
500 Peak

450
Ta
il 1.2
400
1.3
1.4
350 1.5

e
Ris
1.6
1.7
300
1.8
1.9
250 2
Head • Head, Rise and Peak are the
2.1
same as the basic waveform 2.2
200
• slope of the Tail increases as 2.3
depth decreases.
150
• Falloff begins earlier as the
depth decreases
100
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 The basic waveform varies with location
(water type) but is invariant locally
900 900

800 800

700 700
1.2 1.2
1.3 1.3
1.4 1.4
600 600
1.5 1.5
1.6 1.6
1.7 1.7
500 500
1.8 1.8
1.9
1.9
2
400 2
2.1 400
2.2 2.1
2.3 2.2
300 300 2.3

200 200

12-1 100 100

48-5
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41

900
900

800
800

700 1.2 1.1

700
1.3 1.2
1.4 1.3
600 1.5 1.4
600
1.6 1.5
1.7 1.6
500
1.8 500 1.7
1.9 1.8
2 1.9
400
2.1 400 2
2.2 2.1
300 2.3 2.2
300 2.3

200 200

50-1 100 100

57-1
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Lake Michigan, Dahlia Shoals
Date of acquisition: Aug. 27 – Sept. 1, 2001
Maximum water depth noticed: 2.9-3.0 m
Vegetation under water: Yes
Geology: Lake deposits.
Bathymetry: moderate slope
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000

800 12m

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
12m
3
3.1
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
2.9

12m
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
2.8

12m
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
2.7

12m
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
2.6

12m
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
2.5

12m
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
2.4

12m
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
2.3

12m
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000.00
2.2

12m
800.00

600.00

400.00

200.00

0.00
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
2.1

12m
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
2

12m
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41

* interface is the water depth between 0-0.5 m

 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
1.9

12m
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
1.8

12m
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
1.7

12m
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
12m

1.6
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
• Bottom vegetation fluorescence generates a second 12m
peak in the waveform
1.5
800
• The 2nd peak occurs earlier as the depth decreases
• Waveform energy drops quickly after the peak

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
12m

1.4
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
12m

1.3
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
12m

1.2
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
12m
Tail falls below the "dark current" level
Î implies that the air return is not zero (not likely) 1.1
800
Î ringing due to impedance mismatch between the
detector and the digitizer

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
12m

0.9
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
12m

0.8
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
12m

0.7
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)

1000
At depths < 1.0 m 12m
• Early rise
• Overshoot baseline 0.6
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)*

1000
12m

interface
800

600

400

200

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41

* interface is the water depth between 0-0.5 m

 Comparison with depths of shallower waters (0.6-3.2 m)*
interface
0.6
0.7
1000 0.8
0.9
1
1.1
1.2
800 1.3
1.4
1.5
1.6
1.7
600 1.8
1.9
2
2.1
2.2
400 2.3
2.4
2.5
2.6
2.7
200 2.8
• Fluorescence-induced peak would be detectable 2.9
3
at even greater depths. 3.1
12m
0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41

* interface is the water depth between 0-0.5 m

Line 50-1, Session mt000717b

King's Beach
 Kings Beach, Lake Tahoe
Total number of points available: 368
Number of points with depth value: 170 (46% of the total points)
 Calculating the depths
Objective: calculating the shallow water depths
using the Raman channel waveforms.

Method: Decision rules and classification.

Results: preliminary (demonstrating capability)!

Problem
At King's Beach, of the 368 available LIDAR
observations, a water depth was only assigned to 170
(46%) of the observations.

Approach
1. Land/water discrimination
2. Separate between water and shallow water
3. Differentiate between shallow and extremely
shallow water
4. Assign depths within each range
Land/water discrimination
Decision rules (water)

- Low IR signal
- High Raman signal
Land/water discrimination
Decision rules (land)

- High IR signal
- Low Raman signal
Land/water discrimination
Decision rules (water?)

- High IR signal
- High Raman signal
Land/water discrimination
Decision rules (vegetation)

- High IR signal
- Complex Green
channel signal
- Low Raman signal
 NDIland/water – Normalized Difference Index
500

450
bin27 − bin11
NDI land / water =
400
bin27 + bin11 1.2
1.3
1.4
350 1.5
If NDIland/water > 0.2 Î water 1.6
1.7
300
1.8
1.9
250 2
2.1
2.2
200
2.3

150

100
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Water soundings
Predicted Water Water? Land
Actual

Water 294 0 0 294

Water? 0 21 4 25

Land 0 3 44 47
294 24 48

Correspondence (Accuracy)=98%
NDI (bin11 & bin27)
Water soundings Manual
 Decision rules (deep waters)
700

600
1.2
1.3
1.4
500
1.5
1.6
1.7
400
1.8
1.9
300 2
2.1
2.2
200 2.3

100
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
 Decision rules (deep waters)
600

500

400

Avergage
300
std

200

100

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
Decision rules (shallow waters)
700

bin27 − bin22
600

NDI shallow =
bin27 + bin22
500

400 Average
std
deep
300 1.2

200

100

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
700
Decision rules (shallow waters)
600

500

sapmle1
sapmle2
400
sapmle3
sapmle4
sapmle5
land
300
deep
1.2

200

100

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41
Results
Total number of available
points in the dataset: 368.

Number of points with depth

value using the Raman
waveforms: 360 (97% of the
total points).

Number of points with depth

value using the APD
waveforms : 170 (46% of the
total points).

A water depth comparison

between the two waveform
datasets (145 points) shows an
average difference of 0.02 m
with a std of 0.14 m.
 Algorithm
• Mapping the depth via classification:

Raman waveforms

Land Water

Deep Waters Shallow Waters

Shallow Water Extremely

(depth > 1m) Shallow Water

Water Water
Depth Depth
 Summary
• The objective of this study is to increase the
reliability of shallow water LIDAR surveying using
the Raman channel waveforms.
• There is a direct relationship between the Raman
channel waveforms and depths in shallow waters
(lowering of the tail).
• In water depths shallower than 1 m the waveform’s
peak and fall are “pushed” towards the head of the
waveforms.
• These results are preliminary, but show the capability
of mapping shallow waters to resolution in depth of
about a decimeter.
DTM comparison (5m resolution)

APD Raman