Did the lidar teams searching for bodies in residential schools scan the foundation
Executive summary
Available sources in the provided set do not mention teams using lidar to search for bodies in residential schools, nor do they describe whether any such teams scanned foundations or subsurface areas during those searches (available sources do not mention this) [1]. The search results largely cover general lidar technology, workshops and case studies of scanning buildings above ground, not forensic searches of residential school sites [1] [2] [3].
1. What the sources actually say about lidar and building scans
The documents in the provided results explain lidar as a technology that produces high‑resolution 3D point clouds of surfaces — typically capturing ground elevation, building exteriors and interiors — using airborne or terrestrial scanners; they describe vertical accuracy on the order of 10 cm for airborne systems and note ground, building and vegetation returns in multi‑echo data [1] [4]. Several items describe terrestrial or ground‑based scanning of historic buildings and interiors (for preservation and modeling), including examples where teams captured both interiors and exteriors with devices such as the Leica RTC360 [3] [5]. None of these sources discuss scanning foundations for forensic detection of buried human remains [1] [3].
2. Lidar’s physical limits for “seeing” under foundations
Available materials explain lidar measures surfaces by timing reflected laser pulses; airborne lidar can penetrate vegetation canopy and register multiple echoes, but the technology fundamentally measures exposed surfaces (ground, roof, interior walls) and not the contents under solid concrete or deep soil [1] [4]. The sources describe point clouds and derived elevation models, not detection of buried objects beneath intact foundations [1]. The provided reporting does not include any claim that standard lidar scans can detect bodies under building foundations [1].
3. Typical protocols shown in the sources: interior and exterior scanning, not subsurface search
Case studies here show teams scanning interiors and exteriors to build accurate plans and digital twins — for example a school or historic mission was fully scanned for preservation and modeling, with scans producing floorplans and measured data for reconstruction or documentation [3] [5]. These examples imply terrestrial lidar is used where line of sight exists to surfaces; they do not show or claim subsurface or beneath‑slab detection work [3] [5].
4. What the sources do not say — and why that matters
None of the provided links report on government or independent lidar searches for human remains at residential school sites, nor on methods used in such investigations, such as whether foundations were scanned or whether alternative geophysical tools were deployed (available sources do not mention this) [1] [3]. Because the dataset is limited to lidar industry articles, tutorials and project writeups, it lacks reporting from forensic teams, Indigenous nations, police, coroners or archaeology groups who conducted searches; therefore no definitive statement about the procedures used in those specific searches can be drawn from these sources (available sources do not mention forensic searches at residential schools) [1] [3].
5. Alternative methods commonly used for subsurface detection (not in these sources)
While many forensic and archaeological investigations rely on ground‑penetrating radar, magnetometry, soil chemistry and targeted excavation to detect buried remains, the supplied sources focus on airborne and terrestrial lidar for surface mapping and heritage documentation and do not discuss these subsurface geophysical techniques (available sources do not mention ground‑penetrating radar or excavation in the context of residential school searches) [1] [3].
6. How to get a definitive answer
To know whether lidar teams scanned foundations at any specific residential school search, consult primary reporting from the agencies or Indigenous communities leading those searches (police, coroner, First Nations announcements), technical reports produced by the search teams, or investigative journalism that documents methods used. Those authoritative sources are not present in the supplied set; they would provide the necessary details on equipment, whether foundations were scanned, and whether other geophysical tools were used (available sources do not contain this reporting) [1] [3].
Limitations: This analysis uses only the provided search results, which primarily explain lidar technology and present building‑scan case studies; they do not cover forensic searches of residential schools or the specific question about scanning foundations, so definitive confirmation or refutation cannot be made from these sources [1] [3].