Aircraft to collect geodata: several night flights over Berlin

Berlin will be scanned from the air at night with a laser.

A measuring aeroplane will fly over Berlin for several nights, scanning the capital by laser and collecting high-resolution geodata.

The first launch is on Friday night. With bedroom windows open, it may get noisy, as the small aircraft flies relatively low at an altitude of 1,500 to 800 metres, as Michael Möller from the contracted company BSF Swissphoto told the German Press Agency (dpa).

Small aircraft captures precise information with high-performance laser

The background to the campaign: the Federal Agency for Cartography and Geodesy is having a "digital twin" of Germany created, i.e. a digital 3D image of the republic. Now it is Berlin's turn. The small aircraft with the high-performance laser is now systematically flying in patterns over the metropolis, collecting precise information about buildings, roads, forests and bodies of water. For optimal data, the sky must be free of clouds, haze and fog – which is now to be expected.

Data basis can be used in a variety of ways

One field of application for the 3D image is the simulation of heavy rainfall so that the authorities can recognise areas at risk. The data also forms the basis for urban planning, traffic management, environmental protection and disaster prevention. The technology is already in use elsewhere in Germany, for example in the inventory of treetops and flight obstacles.

Measurement flights over the whole of Germany

The President of the Federal Agency for Cartography, Paul Becker, told dpa that the digital 3D image of Germany could be used to address many socially relevant issues. Examples include adaptation measures to climate change, which can be simulated. "Almost three quarters of the measurement flights required for this have been carried out. With a bit of luck and good flying weather, this part of the digital twin can be completed by the end of the year." 

Flights will be repeated regularly

The plan is to repeat the flights regularly in order to record changes. It is likely to be Berlin's turn again in 2027. In a demonstration project for the Federal Office in the greater Hamburg area, aerial images were taken with a ground resolution of 22 centimetres. This is how it works: a scanner on the aircraft emits pulsed light, which is reflected by the object and captured again by the aircraft. A point in space is generated from the position of the aircraft, direction and distance - and a three-dimensional "point cloud" is created from the countless points.