Successful Spring School Structure-from-Motion in Earth Sciences

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Image: Michael Stifel Center Jena

In a cooperation between the Institute of Geography and the Institute of Geosciences, we held the first Spring School on Structure-from-Motion in Earth Sciences from 21-23 March, 2022, in Jena. The first two days were devoted to a hands-on workshop on the advanced processing of photogrammetric data, run by Prof. Marko VrabecExternal link from the University of Ljubljana. During the workshop we created a 3D virtual model of the famous Teufelslöcher in Jena. This outcrop is a great target for three reasons. First, the virtual model allows everyone to inspect it without actually going there - this is great since it is protected. Second, the outcrop is really challenging from a photogrammetry point of view, because it has a very complicated geometry. Third, the Teufelslöcher are very beautiful.
The third day of the Spring School was filled with exciting talks on the latest developments and new applications in Structure-from-Motion. After an introduction by Alexander Brenning (GIScience) and Kamil Ustaszewski (Structural Geology), we had five contributions:

1. Citizen science with UndercoverEisAgenten. Monitoring of Arctic permafrost with UAV images and SfM-derived orthomosaics and point clouds. (Christian Thiel & Marlin Müller, DLR JenaExternal link)
2. Deciduous tree degradation analysis in the historical landscape parks of Sanssouci and Babelsberg (Potsdam) with UAS data. Data preprocessing and Object Based Image Analysis.
   (Sören Hese, FU BerlinExternal link)
3. Time-lapse photogrammetry for 4D ob-servations. Introduction to the principles and application of photogrammetric approaches for 3D measurements in geomorphology and soil sciences with high spatial and temporal resolution. (Anette Eltner, TU DresdenExternal link)
4. Quantifying uncertainties in SFM derived elevation models. A case study of snow depth monitoring in the French Alps. (Jason Goetz, FSU JenaExternal link)
5. Challenges of terrestrial laser scanning underground and in caves. (Mathias Knaak, Geologischer Dienst NRWExternal link)

The workshop attracted scientists from the Institutes of Geography and Geology at FSU Jena, researchers from the Max-Planck Institute SHH, and geology consultants.

We would like to thank all presenters for their interesting contributions.

We thank the Michael Stifel Center Jena for Data-Driven and Simulation ScienceExternal link for supporting the Spring School with a grant.