helicopter, which allows to acquire large amount of geometrical 
data over large portion of landscape. 
During the austral summer of 2001-2002 airborne laser 
scanning data were collected in Antarctica over the summit 
plateau of Erebus volcano (Csatho, 2005; Csatho, 2008). The 
final goal was to provide a high precision map of the active 
craters, to evaluate the potential of the airborne laser scanning 
method for topographic activity in Antarctica and to establish 
calibration/validation standards (Mc Murdo Sound area). 
This range based technique was also used to measure the 
elevation and surface roughness of sea ice in East Antarctica. 
The Antarctic Australian Division is involved in The Sea Ice 
Physics and Ecosystem eXperiment II (SIPEX-II). As part of 
this project, a TLS (Terrestrial Laser Scanner) survey was made 
in combination with snow and ice depth measurements. The 
final DEM will contribute to a three-dimensional picture of 
snow and ice thickness and topography (Lieser, 2008). 
An interesting scanning project (Antarctica New Zealand Event 
K021) in the field of cultural heritage was performed by the 
University of Waikato (New Zealand), together with national 
and international private companies, to digitize, preserve and 
valorise Scott’s huts at Hut Point and Cape Evans, and 
Shackleton's hut at Cape Royds (Gibb, 2011). These pre- 
fabricated wooden huts represent some of the few heritage sites 
in Antarctica and thus are considered artefacts of great value. 
Besides the specific goals of the project, this study was useful to 
provide a  proof-of-concept that validate the research 
methodology in a complex and extreme environment. 
The same kind of experiences were carried out in the arctic area. 
An airborne laser scanning survey was taken to monitor the ice 
elevation and sea-ice thickness in Greenland (Forsberg, 2001). 
The measurements in the polar sea north of Greenland have 
shown that sea-ice freeboard can readily be measured using 
laser sensors. 
During 2012 a 16-member team, funded in part by NSF's Arctic 
Sciences Division, measured the snow cover of the North Slope 
of Alaska using a variety of techniques including terrestrial 
laser scanning. The goal of the project was to develop a more 
effective way of measuring snow depth in variable conditions 
and over large areas (Sturm, 2012). 
1.3 Environmental Conditions 
Summer season in the Terra Nova Bay area is characterized by 
h 24 sun irradiation (in absence of cloud coverage) and 
temperature range between -10?/-5? Celsius. The wind-chill, 
which is the perceived decrease in air temperature felt by the 
body on exposed skin due to the flow of cold air, can be lower 
according with weather conditions. 
The wind speed is also variable from the total absence of wind 
to strong wind condition up to 150 km/h. The latter goes under 
the name of katabatic wind formed by cold and dense air 
flowing out from the polar plateau of the interior down the steep 
vertical drops along the coast. 
The area of Boulder Clay is a debris covered glacier (Figure 2). 
The superficial morphology of this ice-free area is characterized 
by lateral and shear moraine ridges, large nets and patterned 
grounds and, above all, by many debris cones located near 
frozen lakes (Gragnani, 1998; Guglielmin, 2003). 
1.4 Survey Planning 
Before the ENEA UTICT (Technical Unit for ICT) laser 
scanning team departure to Antarctica, the ENEA UTA staff 
(Technical Unit for Antarctica) provided GPS points and 
cartography to study the features of the portion of land which 
was planned to be digitized. At the beginning the target area 
was identified in “Antenna Camp”, two km far from the Italian 
Research Station, which insists on granitic bed rock. However, 
the initial target area was changed due to environmental issues 
and newly identified in the Boulder Clay moraine. 
  
  
Figure 2. Boulder Clay moraine 
GPS endpoints of the main airstrip’s axis were provided as well 
(Table 1). 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
GPS Southern Eastern 
Points Coordinates Coordinates 
point 1 S74?43.978' E164°02.924' 
point 2 S74°45.194' E164°01.056' 
  
Table 1. GPS end points main runway 
In order to plan the network of scanning stations, it was used 
the Google Earth™ software which allowed to create a visual 
pattern for technicians to find their way through such flat 
surface (Figure 3). The two GPS points where imported into the 
software and according to them it was possible to plan all the 
other laser scanning stations. For each position the latitude and 
longitude were extracted and imported into a GPS mobile 
device used on field. 
  
Figure 3. Boulder Clay runways main axis visualized with 
Google Earth™ 
With the help of the logistic staff of the base extendible metal 
supports for targets and a movable table to house the laptop 
during stations setup were realized. 
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