1997 Fall East Coast NOAA/USGS/NASA Airborne LiDAR Assessment of Coastal Erosion (ALACE) Project for the US Coastline

This data set includes data collected from September to October 1997 and covers the states of South Carolina,
North Carolina, Maryland, and Virginia.
Laser beach mapping uses a pulsed laser ranging system mounted onboard an aircraft to measure ground
elevation and coastal topography. The laser emits laser beams at high frequency and is directed downward at the
earth's surface through a port opening in the bottom of the aircraft's fuselage. The laser system records the
time difference between emission of the laser beam and the reception of the reflected laser signal in the
aircraft. The aircraft travels over the beach at approximately 60 meters per second while surveying from
the low water line to the landward base of the sand dunes.