To help promote the use of centimeter and sub-centimeter level GPS for surveying archaeological sites, a series of tests was conducted at the deserted medieval village of Cottam in East Yorkshire, England. In order to understand the capabilities of the technology, the GPS system was tested for speed, accuracy, and reliability and the results were compared with those from a conventional total station. Using the capabilities of the total station as a benchmark, the GPS system's accuracy and reliability were found to be acceptable. The test system, however, was found to be considerably slower than the total station and much more difficult to use with equivalent levels of accuracy.
Volume 30 Number 2 (Summer 2005) Table of Contents