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Alvarado, Crystal

Crystal

Alvarado

Presentation: 2026 ND EPSCoR Annual conference 

October 20, 2026, Minot, North Dakota

UAS-LiDAR Detection of Ground Surface Anomalies: Using Remote Sensing and Geospatial Data Science to Locate Potential Unmarked Burials at the Former Fort Totten Indian School

Crystal

Alvarado

Undergraduate Student
Minot State University

Joseph Collette, Professor of Geoscience, Minot State University; Nigel George, Professor of Physics, Minot State University

Session

Poster #13

The history of U.S. Indian boarding schools includes systematic abuse and neglect, leaving a legacy of trauma and suspected unmarked burials at institutions like the former Fort Totten Indian Boarding School in North Dakota. In partnership with the Spirit Lake Nation, this ongoing study applies a non-invasive methodology using UAS-LiDAR to identify potential unmarked graves, which often appear as subtle surface depressions. High-resolution topographic data were acquired and processed to create a Bare Earth Digital Elevation Model (DEM). Initial trials using a fully automated, sitewide depression detection algorithm yielded a high false-positive rate due to natural terrain features. Consequently, the research pivoted to a hybrid workflow that integrated manual delineation of historical pathways. Depressions close to these pathways were used to initially reduce the number of candidates, though the dataset remained large. Additional filtering approaches were then applied, utilizing depression anomaly detection and distinguishing expected geometric traits. This led to a significantly reduced candidate set, which was subsequently manually reviewed to produce 25 high-probability candidates. All final locations and geospatial data will be presented to the Spirit Lake Nation, who hold full ownership of the findings to guide their own decisions regarding any potential future ground-truthing.

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Fargo, ND 58102

Phone: (701) 231-8400

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NDSU Dept. 4450
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