Date of Award
2015
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
Earth System Science
Committee Chair
Tom Sever
Committee Member
Richard McNider
Committee Member
Burgess Howell
Subject(s)
Multispectral imaging--Peru--Chicama River Valley, Remote sensing, Archaeology--Remote sensing, Chicama River Valley (Peru)--Remote sensing
Abstract
Around 100 A.D. a regional culture emerged on the north coast of Peru in the Moche Valley that lasted for several centuries. Today called the Moche or Mochica, it is considered on of the earliest states to emerge in the valleys of the Andes. The environment the Moche flourished in is one of extremes, from high deserts in the Andes to lush river valleys and an unforgiving coastline that overlooks the pacific Ocean, In this harsh environment the Moche grew and succeeded partly because of their achievement in advanced irrigation technology. How did the ancient Moche adapt to a desert environment in the Chicama Valley and how can high resolution multispectral remote sensing best be used to identify these features? This study aims to determine the extent to which the Mochica used their landscape, testing the effectiveness of different methods applied to high resolution multispectral remote sensing to locate land use features the Moche constructed between 100 and 800 A.D. This will provide a methodology highlighting the powers of remote sensing for archaeology by evaluating different vegetation indices and data transformations to determine the most effective means of identifying features.
Recommended Citation
Herdy, Claire Christine, "Multispectral remote sensing of archaeological features in the Chicama Valley, Peru" (2015). Theses. 129.
https://louis.uah.edu/uah-theses/129