LIDAR Technology at Work

By Rick Robinson

The disastrous fire in early 2019 that badly damaged Notre Dame Cathedral set in play a sequence of events that may end up protecting U.S. troops in combat and other dangerous environments.

The story actually begins well before the fire —with a 2014 video game called Assassin’s Creed Unity set in 18th century Paris. The game developers used LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) to create a gloriously detailed, virtual model of Notre Dame. The technology uses laser light to detect and track objects, much like how radar uses microwaves.