Vis Geosci (2006) 10: 1319

DOI 10.1007/s10069-005-0026-9

O R I GI N A L A R T IC L E

Immo Trinks Phillip Clegg Ken McCarey

Richard Jones Richard Hobbs Bob Holdsworth
Nick Holliman Jonny Imber Steve Waggott
Robert Wilson

Mapping and analysing virtual outcrops

Received: 17 February 2005 / Revised: 8 June 2005 / Accepted: 10 June 2005 / Published online: 21 September 2005
Springer-Verlag 2005

Abstract Laser scanning is a very ecient way to generate realistic, high-resolution digital models of 3-D
geological outcrops. This paper discusses the methodologies involved in the creation and analysis of virtual
outcrops, based on laser scanner data. The visualisation
of the laser scanner data as a photorealistic 3-D object is
described. Geological features picked out on the virtual
outcrop (e.g. fractures, faults or bedding planes) can be
extrapolated outward, into space, and inward, into the
subsurface, using tension surfaces.
Keywords Visualisation Outcrop Laser
scanning Virtual reality

Introduction
Traditional methods of mapping and analysing geological outcrop data are based on a combination of geological surveying, photo-mosaics, cairn mapping,
structural eld data, stereo plots, rose diagrams and 3-D
Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is
available in the online version of this article at http://dx.doi.org/
10.1007/s10069-005-0026-9
Reviewed by: J.D. Clemens, D. Yuen
I. Trinks (&) R. Jones R. Hobbs N. Holliman
e-Science Research Institute, University of Durham,
DH1 3LE, Durham, UK
E-mail: immo.trinks@raa.se
P. Clegg B. Holdsworth J. Imber R. Wilson
Reactivation Research Group, Dept. of Earth Sciences,
University of Durham, DH1 LE, Durham, UK
E-mail: p.clegg@durham.ac.uk
K. McCarey R. Jones
Geospatial Research Ltd., Dept. of Earth Sciences,
University of Durham, DH1 3LE, Durham, UK
S. Waggott
Halcrow Group Ltd, Arndale House, Otley Road,
LS6 2UL Leeds, UK

block diagrams. Not only are these methods time consuming, but, in addition, the nal output is generally in
the form of a series of two-dimensional, largely paperbased images that attempt to depict a three-dimensional
world. This approach can make it dicult to adequately
visualise and analyse the spatial and temporal relationships between dierent geological structures, requiring
the geologists to develop a 3-D and often 4-D (temporal)
picture within their imagination. This must then be
transcribed into some form of representative model,
such as a block diagram or cartoon. This process is
highly subjective and relies on the skill and ability of the
geoscientist to imagine the observed data and to reproduce it in a form presentable to others (e.g. see Jones
et al. 2004).
Increasingly, geologists are utilising the benets of
digital mapping technology (e.g. Xu et al. 2000, Edmondo2002, McCarey et al. 2003, Jones et al. 2004,
Clegg et al. 2005, McCarey et al. 2005, Wilson et al.
2005) whereby data is captured using Global Positioning
Systems (GPS) and laser scanning equipment, and
viewed and analysed in Geographical Information Systems (GIS). These new technologies permit fast and
accurate data acquisition, and provide additional
important geospatial information by allowing a variety
of data types to be viewed simultaneously. However, the
data are still generally analysed and presented in a twodimensional framework. Ideally, the geologist needs a
means of capturing the 3-D topography and spatial
geometry of an outcrop in a digital format that can be
viewed and analysed, like a real outcrop, in three
dimensions on a computer workstation or laptop, with
the additional benet of sophisticated data processing
and visualisation algorithms.
The Reactivation Research Group (RRG) in the
Earth Sciences Department, in collaboration with Geospatial Research Ltd (GRL) and the e-Science Research
Institute at the University of Durham are incorporating
photo-realistic virtual outcrops into their well established digital mapping methodology, GAVA (Geospatial
Acquisition, Visualisation & Analysis). Photo-realistic

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virtual outcrops are detailed digital copies of real-world

surface exposures that provide great benets to the
geologist, and overcome many of the problems associated with traditional paper-based outcrop mapping and
structural analysis. Virtual outcrops are created using a
combination of high-resolution terrestrial laser scanners,
Real-Time Kinematic GPS (RTK GPS) and digital
photogrammetry, and are geospatially and geometrically
precise 3-D models. The spatial and geometrical precision involved in recording the data (6 mm) has ve
main advantages:
it allows all parts of the visible outcrop to be studied
rather than observations/measurements being restricted to those regions that may safely be accessed
on foot by the eld-based scientist;
it allows geoscientists to carry out additional detailed
analysis and interpretation of outcrops away from the
eld area;
it generates geological datasets and models that are
georeferenced to a previously unobtainable level of
accuracy;
it reduces the degree of abstraction required in
developing 3-D models of geological architectures;
it results in data and models that are in a format more
directly comparable with interpretations of sub-surface geophysical data, most notably 3-D seismic
reection data.
In combination with state-of-the-art visualisation
facilities, such as wall-sized stereoscopic screens and fullcolour auto-stereoscopic 3-D monitors, these highly
detailed, spatially and geometrically correct models are
ideal for lab-based training of students and professional
scientists, as well as for the generation of greater public
awareness and understanding of geosciences. Virtual
outcrops could be shared and analysed within the scientic community irrespective of the work place location. The highly accurate virtual outcrops can be used as
rock-structure analogues on a sub-seismic scale for
permeability and uid ow studies in reservoirs (Clegg
et al. 2005).

Data acquisition using laser scanning

The principle of laser scanning is simple: a laser light
pulse is emitted towards the outcrop and the travel
time of the reected light is used to calculate the
distance to the reecting point. If the precise position
and orientation of the laser light source is known, it is
possibly to determine the 3-D coordinates of the point
that caused the reection. In modern terrestrial laser
scanners, this process is repeated up to 12,000 times
per second to build a high-resolution digital terrain
model of the outcrop. While aerial and satellite-based
imaging (such as LiDAR and INSAR) can be used to
generate a regional 3-D model with 1020 cm point
resolution, terrestrial stationary laser scanning can
provide data with millimetre accuracy, as well as

resolve details on vertical surfaces. In addition to the

xyz-point coordinate information, the reection intensity is recorded, and true colour values are assigned to
each scan point using a digital camera. The entire
scanning and colour recording process for a single
scanner location is completed in a matter of minutes.
The examples shown here were captured using a Riegl
LMS Z360i scanner with an in-scan-line measurement
accuracy of 5 mm over a distance of up to 200 m
(Fig. 1). The digital camera used for the colour
assignment is a Nikon D100 tted with a 14-mm ultra
wide-angle lens. Additional geological observations
and measurements made on the outcrop may be spatially located and recorded using a Laser-Ranger or
Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) GPS linked to a handheld computer. While laser scanning is ideal for cli
sections, RTK mapping, combined with aerial photogrammetry, is particularly useful for recording subhorizontal outcrops, such as beach sections.

3-D data processing

The large size of the data sets (as large as several
million points) involved in processing and visualisation
of laser scanner data requires computers with at least
512 MB of memory. Linux, Unix, Mac OS X and
Windows operating systems are suitable for the range
of software available. Generally, the rst step in processing laser scanner data is to convert the raw data
into a 3-D object format. It may be necessary to reduce
the data in this process in order to keep les to a
manageable size. Laser scanner data les in ASCII
(text) format normally consist of a number of columns
describing the xyz-coordinates of each scan point, the
reection intensity and possibly, depending on the
functionality of the scanner used, RGB (red, green,
blue) colour values. RGB colour values are a triplet of
intensity values for each of the colours varying between
either 0.0 and 1.0 or 0 and 255. In order to create a 3D object le, only some of the data may be of interest.
Spreadsheet programs may not be able to deal with
such large numbers of data typically involved in 3-D
laser scanning. Instead, software tools such as the
command line tool Gawk can be used to extract, for
example, every 10th data point. Data sets of up to one
million points should cause no problems or substantial
delays during processing and rendering. The next step
is to convert the xyz RGB text le into a 3-D object
format, in order to display it with a 3-D viewer. We use
the Visualisation ToolKit (VTK) 3-D object format. A
header is assigned to the point coordinates and point
properties such as colour or reection intensity are
dened for each point. If surface mesh information is
available from the raw data, we may include this
information by listing the indices of the points that
make up the grill or triangle nodes. Such spatial point
cloud or surface les may then be displayed with a 3-D
viewer.

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Fig. 1 3-D laser scanner
(RieglLMS Z360i) with digital
camera mounted on top, in
front of the Cullercoats
outcrop, located on the coast
northeast of Newcastle, UK

Surface reconstruction from 3-D point data

It is possible to visualise a point cloud as simple point
data or alternatively, as triangulated surfaces. The
advantage of a solid surface presentation over point
cloud visualisation is that no gaps are visible between
scanned data points. The triangulation of the point
data into a surface grid is either performed by the
scanner software or separately with a triangulation and
surface reconstruction program. With the information
Table 1 Relevant internet sites:

of azimuth and inclination of the laser beam during the

scanning process, it is possible to connect neighbouring
scan points to triangles based on the in-line and crossline scanning indices. This procedure is computationally much simpler than a 3-D surface reconstruction
using spatial triangulation. If only 3-D point cloud
data, without any gridding information, is available, we
can use 3-D surface reconstruction software to generate
a triangulated grid. Two-dimensional Delaunay triangulation, with respect to a suitable reference plane, may
be used for simple 3-D objects. The high-end com-

RRG/GAVA:
Geospatial Research:
Halcrow:
Riegl 3D Laser Scanner:
Visualisation Toolkit (VTK):
VTK 3D data le formats:
Paraview:
Generic Mapping Tools (GMT):
Cocone/SuperCocone/TightCocone:
Polyworks:
Gawk:
Head mounted displays:

http://www.dur.ac.uk/react.res/RRG_web
http://www.dur.ac.uk/grl
http://www.halcrow.com
http://www.riegl.co.at
http://public.kitware.com/VTK
http://www.vtk.org/pdf/le-formats.pdf
http://www.paraview.org
http://gmt.soest.hawaii.edu
http://www.cse.ohio-state.edu/tamaldey/cocone.html
http://www.innovmetric.com
http://www.gnu.org/software/gawk/gawk.html
http://www.inition.co.uk/inition/products_hmds.htm

16

mercial package PolyWorks or the freely available

Software Cocone, SuperCocone or TightCocone (Dey
et al. 2001; Dey and Goswami2003) are able to
reconstruct complex surfaces from point cloud data
(see Table 1).
For simple point cloud data, the impression of a
continuous surface can be achieved by increasing the
pixel size of each point. The point size needed to achieve
a surface impression depends on the distance to the
observer. This process will blur the image with increasing numbers of pixels used to represent individual
points, but it is a simple and eective way to generate
reasonably realistic models.

3-D data visualisation and interpretation

Once the data are converted into a 3-D object format
they can be viewed using 3-D visualisation software. The
free software Paraview, based on the VTK visualisation
library, lends itself to the display of the data under Linux
and Windowsoperating systems. Three-dimensional data
viewers oer mouse-based functionality where zoom,
rotation and panning are assigned to the mouse buttons.
Unless an auto-stereoscopic display or immersive projection environment is available (such as that shown in
Fig. 2) the 3-D character of the data will be best visible
when the object is moved. The example animation presented here is of laser scanner data.
Interactive analysis of the virtual outcrop opens entirely new perspectives to access and interpret the data.
For example, we have noticed that fracture planes are
sometimes more clearly visible in 3-D when viewed from
an inside out position corresponding to the perspective of an observer looking outward from within the
rock volume.

Fig. 2 Viewing the 3-D laser

scanner outcrop data using the
immersive back projection
screen, light-weight polarisation
glasses and a 3-D mouse, in the
3-D visualisation facility at the
e-Science Research Institute at
the University of Durham. The
display software is Paraview
under Windows operating
system in stereo-display mode.
Since the projectors are located
behind the screen, it is possible
to walk close to the screen
without casting shadows

A virtual outcrop model created using the method

outlined above is a 3-D representation of surface geology, but it does not contain sub-surface information.
Additional geological interpretation and extrapolation
of surface features must be undertaken in order to
construct a 3-D model that includes sub-surface or
above surface geology. To this purpose, we have developed a lightweight visualisation and interpretation
software, that allows interactive visualisation, the picking of structures on the virtual outcrop model, the tting
of tension surfaces through the picked points, and easy
generation of y-by animations. This application and its
user interface are written in TclTk making use of the
VTK Tcl library.
Figure 3 shown the photograph of a well-exposed
outcrop situated at Cullercoats on the NE coast of
England near Newcastle. The data were recorded using a
scanner generously supplied and operated by Halcrow
Group Ltd. Members of RRG scanned and collected
additional structural data. The scanned outcrops consist
of dune cross-bedded Permian sandstones that are located in the hanging-wall of the 90 Fathom Fault, one of
the major bounding faults between the Northumberland
Basin to the north and the Alston Block to the south
(DePaola et al. 2005). The sandstones contain a heterogeneous and complex system of deformation bands
that developed during faulting. This location was chosen
for a number of reasons: good 3-D exposure, relatively
good accessibility of the site; easily identiable although
complex structures; and because it represents a typical
example of sub-seismic-scale structures developed in a
sandstone oil/gas reservoir rock. Over a period of
2 days, approximately 200 m of outcrop were scanned
and photographed, producing a combined dataset of
around 9 million data points. In Fig. 4 we show the
virtual outcrop generated from a single scanning loca-

17
Fig. 3 Photograph of outcrop
at Cullercoats (NE England).
The Permian sandstone is
bedded and densely fractured.
This outcrop was digitised using
a 3-D laser scanner. Colour
values were recorded in
addition to the spatial position
for each scan point with a
digital camera. This
photograph was taken in the
summer, while the scanning
took place in spring, which
explains the dierences in
colour when compared with
Fig. 4

Fig. 4 Photo-realistic virtual

outcrop consisting of 3-D scan
points. The representation size
of the approximately 850,000
points may be adjusted to
generate the impression of a
continuous surface. White gaps
in the point cloud indicate
shadow regions during the
scanning process. This virtual
outcrop can be viewed using
true-colour stereo rendering in
an immersive environment or
an auto-stereoscopic 3-D
display

tion (Fig. 1) with a lateral point density of about 2 cm

on the outcrop. This single data set consists of approx.
850,000 scan points that are displayed as individual
point cloud data. The inset window in Fig. 4 shows the
point size selection dialog that allows the change of
representation size (in pixels) of individual data points,
in order to generate a continuous surface impression.
The main feature of our interpretation tool is the
ability to pick points in 3-D. The interactive visualisa-

Fig. 5 View of the above virtual

outcrop from the right side. The
surface exposure of a fracture
may be picked interactively.
Picked points are shown as blue
spheres. Their locations are
written to a le for further
processing, such as 3-D surface
tting. The accuracy of the
picker may be adjusted
accordingly to the point density

tion allows the user to select data points of the laser

scanner data cloud, using the mouse, and to store them
as 3-D objects. The selected points may be colour coded
and displayed in the form of scaleable 3-D spheres
(Fig. 5). This picking tool is also used to obtain coordinate information for the selected points and to measure distances between them. Many geological features
that are visible in outcrops are caused by interfaces between sedimentological features, such as bedding planes,

18
Fig. 6 Example of automated
tting of a tension surface
through picked points. The
spatial information contained
in the 3-D pick point locations
is used to extrapolate the
surface into space and the subsurface. A comparison of the
tension surface with a best-t
plane may provide uncertainty
estimates for the surface tting.
Note the individual scan points
close to the observer, which
merge into a continuous surface
at greater distance

or the surface expression of faults and fractures. Standard geological mapping techniques include the measurement of strike and dip of geological interfaces in the
eld. Similar measurements can be made for the virtual
outcrop model either directly or by adding in eld
measurements located in their correct geospatial position using high-precision GPS equipment. In addition,
we can use surface tting algorithms to extrapolate the
surface expression of geological interfaces, dened by a
set of picked points, into the subsurface. We make use of
the Generic Mapping Tools(GMT) (Wessel and Smith
1991) surface command, a gridding algorithm for the
generation of an adjustable tension surface of continuous curvature through a set of 3-D points (Fig. 6). The
correct extrapolation of tension surfaces that t a chosen
set of pick points is dependent on the picking error, the
distance from the outcrop surface, the continuity of the
geological surface and the mathematical function used.
A comparison with a best-t plane through the pick
points may provide a quantitative measure for the
uncertainty associated with the surface approximation.
Picking of geological surfaces such as bedding, faults
and fractures in virtual reality permits the generation of

Fig. 7 The picking and surface tting process may be repeated for
several structures to generate a complex 3-D fracture model. This
model can be used as basis for qualitative and quantitative
geological analysis of deformation processes in 3-D and 4-D, and

entire 3-D geological models, e.g. fracture networks

(Fig. 7) and sedimentary architectures. Such fracture
models may provide sub-seismic analogue reservoir rock
models for investigating uid ow, as an aid in illustrating complex 3-D geometry of faults, fractures, folds
and sedimentary architectures to students, and for improved interactive displays for public understanding of
science. Virtual outcrops are well suited for teaching
purposes and for preparatory and follow-on work
associated with eld trips.
A ow-chart illustrating the generation of a virtual
outcrop from 3-D laser scanner data is also shown.

Outlook
Digital mapping allows the capture of a much larger
amount of information than traditional methods, and
provides geoscientists with new tools for data processing
and analysis. The creation of realistic 3-D models of
geological structures, using laser scanning, and their
spatial interpretation in computer-generated virtual
scenes, is still an emerging technology. Future develop-

to study uid ow characteristics of reservoir rocks. The model

allows the comparison of fractures an the scale of an outcrop with
fractures identied using seismic data

19

merge the virtual outcrop with the real environment in

order to rene the model through interaction with the
augmented reality.
Acknowledgements This research was funded with the support of
joint NERC/BP/Statoil funding through a LINK award to the
University of Durham (NER/T/S/2000/01018), an associated tied
studentship to Wilson (NER/S/S2001/06740) and a NERC Followon Fund (NE/C506964/1). The authors thank Prof. Dave Yuen and
Prof. John D. Clemens for a thorough review and helpful comments.

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Fig. 8 A ow-chart illustrating the generation of a virtual outcrop

from 3-D laser scanner data

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geologist to take the digital data back into the eld and

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