feat: Lidar Blog Post

src/content/blog/2024-12-13-statewide-lidar-products-now-available.mdx

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+---
+title: Statewide Lidar Products Now Available
+author: Miriam Seely
+description: >-
+  We are thrilled to announce the completion of the Lidar baseline for the state
+  of Utah, a project that has been more than ten years in the making.
+date: '2024-12-13T17:26:48.506Z'
+category: Collaboration
+cover_image: /src/images/pillar-blog/2024-12-13-statewide-lidar-products-now-available/lidar_covercard.png
+cover_image_alt: ugrc social card
+---
+
+import myImage from '@images/blog/2024-12-13-statewide-lidar-products-now-available/lidarpointcloud.png';
+
+import myImage2 from '@images/blog/2024-12-13-statewide-lidar-products-now-available/shadedrelief.png';
+
+import { Image } from 'astro:assets';
+
+import Contacts from '@components/page/Contacts.astro';
+
+We are thrilled to announce the completion of the Lidar baseline for the state of Utah, a project that has been more than ten years in the making. Some of our collaborators have included the Division of Emergency Management, the Utah Geological Survey, the [USGS 3DEP Program](https://www.usgs.gov/3d-elevation-program), Earth MRI, FEMA, US Forest Service, and many more local partners. Every cog in this great machine has played an important role in creating datasets that benefit many different sectors, from flood mapping to ecological assessment to construction. Now, at this point, you might be asking yourself: what exactly is Lidar and why do we need a baseline of it? Well, answering those questions and more is the goal of today's blog post, so strap your aviator goggles on and let's talk about Lidar. (Don't worry, the goggles will make sense in a moment.)
+
+So, Lidar. It's actually an acronym that stands for “Light Detection and Ranging”. It's a form of remotely-sensed data, meaning that the data is collected without direct contact with the study subject. In the case of Lidar, specialized sensors are mounted on an aircraft and flown over an area where data is to be collected. The sensor emits invisible beams of light, which bounce once they hit an object and are reflected back to the sensor. The sensor emits several million of these beams of light, called pulses, every second, and by collecting the return times of each pulse, it can put together a three-dimensional “image” of the ground below. 
+
+<Image src={myImage} loading="eager" alt= "Lidar point cloud." />
+
+This image, made of reflected pulses of light, is called a point cloud. Each point represents the spot where a pulse bounced off a tree, building, or other object. By aggregating these points together, we can put together a high-resolution image that can help us measure topography, elevation, vegetation, and much more. These images can be combined, or mosaicked, together to form larger maps of entire cities, counties, or, as of just a few weeks ago, the entire state of Utah.
+
+<Image src={myImage2} loading="eager" alt= "A shaded relief map of the area around Duchesne, Utah." />
+
+Collecting Lidar data is no simple task. You can take those aviator goggles off now; we won't actually be flying in any planes. That part has already been done by many vendors contracted by UGRC to collect Lidar data. In addition to the pilots collecting the data, UGRC has partnered with the [United States Geological Survey](https://www.usgs.gov/) to aggregate the data and ensure accuracy. We also have spearheaded grant applications and a competitive bid process for our contractors. Through our partnerships with USGS and many others, we have been able to make high-resolution Lidar products available for every square inch of our beautiful state.
+
+So, why does it matter? There's already lots of data, even Lidar data, available for Utah. So why do we need high-resolution Lidar? Having higher resolution data doesn't just mean the picture looks nicer. It means that each pixel is a better representation of the real world; so when urban planners, construction managers, and everyday homeowners want to draft up a new building, they have more accurate data to work with.
+
+High-resolution Lidar is beneficial for nature's builders too. Gathering Lidar data is a relatively non-invasive way to assess habitat for wildlife and can help us find solutions to protect Utah's native species. Lidar data can delineate beaver dams, model streams and rivers, and quantify forest canopies. Beyond biological assessment, Lidar data can also be used to map geological hazards, potential flood zones, and fire-prone areas. The potential for Lidar products is enormous, and that's exactly why UGRC has poured so much time and attention into acquiring the best possible data.
+
+So, we've got all this super cool data that can do super cool things. What's next? UGRC has already acquired Lidar data for the entire state of Utah, so now we are working to create a variety of elevation products that will be available for download, including digital models like the ones pictured above. We will be combining, or mosaicking, existing elevation models to create larger, more convenient tiles at 1 meter resolution. These products will be available for download on our [Raster Data Discovery](https://raster.utah.gov/) website. We also acquired Lidar data for the Salt Lake Valley floor in 2023 and anticipate these data becoming publicly available in the coming months.
+
+This project is part of UGRC's [mission](/about/) to “ensure a high level of coordination among Utah GIS users and effective, efficient use of GIS resources.” You can learn more about other ongoing projects on [our blog](/blog/). For more information about Lidar acquisition and analysis in Utah, please reach out to <Contacts inline subject={frontmatter.title} contactKey='elevation' />.