{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,25]],"date-time":"2026-01-25T20:21:55Z","timestamp":1769372515466,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":63,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"17","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,22]],"date-time":"2023-08-22T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1692662400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Romanian Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digitization","award":["11PFE\/30.12.2021"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["11PFE\/30.12.2021"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Remote Sensing"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The identification and delineation, through aerial photography, of the archaeological structures that present temporal resolution, as well as their characterization based on high-resolution LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging)-derived DEMs (Digital Elevation Models) are modern techniques widely used in the archaeological prospecting of various landscapes. In this study, we present an application of Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) and aerial photography (AP) techniques, used in order to compute geomorphometric indices specific to the ashmound structures of Late Bronze Age (LBA) archaeological sites that are visible on the soil surface. The necessity of determining the ashmounds\u2019 geoarchaeological description stems from the fact that despite the majority of archaeologists weighing in on the subject, there is still no accepted explanation regarding their initial functionality. Thus, we believe that the GIS-based high-resolution characterization of 200 ashmound features identified in 21 Noua Culture (NC) archaeological sites will contribute to a better understanding of the ashmounds\u2019 functionality and evolution in the heterogeneous landscape of the study area (NE Romania). Therefore, various shape indices, such as the area (A), perimeter (P), length (L), form factor (RF), circularity ratio (RC), and elongation ratio (RE) were computed for microlevel characterizations of the visible ashmounds\u2019 structures. Additionally, LiDAR-derived DEMs with a 0.5 m resolution were used to generate more surface characteristics such as the slope (S) and hypsometric indices (HI). The outcomes indicate that the ashmounds have relatively diverse shapes (an RF range from 0.37 to 0.77; a RC range from 0.79 to 0.99; a RE range from 0.68 to 0.99), and the micro-relief slightly varies from positive to negative landforms (HI range from 0.34 to 0.61) depending on the erosion intensity (S range from 1.17\u00b0 to 19.69\u00b0) and anthropogenic impact (e.g., current land use and agriculture type). Furthermore, each morphometric parameter is an indicator for surface processes, aiding in the identification of the geomorphologic and surface-erosion aspects that affect the archaeological remains, contributing to the assessment of the conservation status of the ashmound structures within the current landscape configuration. In this regard, this article presents and discusses the remote sensing (RS) techniques used, as well as the morphometric data obtained, exploring the implications of our findings for a better characterization of the NC in Romania.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/rs15174124","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,23]],"date-time":"2023-08-23T08:01:21Z","timestamp":1692777681000},"page":"4124","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":5,"title":["Inside Late Bronze Age Settlements in NE Romania: GIS-Based Surface Characterization of Ashmound Structures Using Airborne Laser Scanning and Aerial Photography Techniques"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2212-5184","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Casandra","family":"Bra\u0219oveanu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Exact and Natural Sciences, Institute of Interdisciplinary Research, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Ia\u015fi (UAIC), St. Lasc\u0103r Catargi 54, 700107 Iasi, Romania"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1686-9558","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alin","family":"Mihu-Pintilie","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Exact and Natural Sciences, Institute of Interdisciplinary Research, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Ia\u015fi (UAIC), St. Lasc\u0103r Catargi 54, 700107 Iasi, Romania"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5045-8656","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Radu-Alexandru","family":"Brunchi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Doctoral School, Faculty of History, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Ia\u015fi (UAIC), St. Lasc\u0103r Catargi 54, 700107 Iasi, Romania"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,22]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"494","DOI":"10.1016\/j.palaeo.2007.12.014","article-title":"Pollen-based quantitative reconstructions of Holocene climate variability in NW Romania","volume":"260","author":"Feurdean","year":"2008","journal-title":"Paleogeogr. 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