Introducing Satellite Remote Sensing Systems and its Application in Archaeology Case Study: Behshahr Plain- Mazandaran

Human groups have considered the Behshahr plain of Mazandaran in the past Due to its particular geographical shape, location between the Caspian Sea and mountains, and the existence of some rivers in the region. However, our knowledge of this area is limited to several published surveys and archaeological investigation of its ancient sites. No detailed research has conducted on the formation of the settlement and the impact of geographical factors on it. Therefore, it is necessary to study the structure of the settlement pattern of this region. In the present study, new methods in archeology and a combination of archaeological data and remote sensing science were used rather than the traditional methods. Archaeologists need to know the advantages and disadvantages of using satellite remote sensing as a powerful tool for visualizing past perspectives. Applying remote sensing in archeology is one of the purposes of this study. Aerial photography, geophysics, laser scanning, geographic information analysis in GIS, and satellite imagery analysis are all aspects of remote sensing. They are all valuable for ancient research and promote non-destructive archeology, where using satellite remote sensing in archeology is the focus of this article. From a practical perspective, there can be an advancement over the traditional archaeologistchr('39')s research works with research using remote sensing satellite techniques. The use of satellite remote sensing for discoveries in archaeological studies, environment, and research programs, will be very usual and perfect and give us a fantastic insight into the social landscape of the past. This article discusses the types of satellite imagery with their advantages and disadvantages available to archaeologists and their applications in various archaeological projects to select the most appropriate images and provide information on other image types. To better understand the cases mentioned above, the settlement pattern of Behshahr evaluated with a combination of field methods and remote sensing techniques, GIS, spatial analysis functions, and multivariate regression methods. In this study, a sentinel-2 satellite image with a spatial resolution of 10 m noted on 2017, Topographic maps, 1/25000 maps and spatial data of the study area used after necessary preprocessing and correction, information layers including forest land cover, water zones, fields, coastal lands, elevation, and waterways classified as effectual environmental factors (independent parameter) in the formation of ancient settlements. In the next step, using buffer function to the spatial value of the settlements as a dependent parameter, linear regression modeling was used for spatial modeling and analysis. Therefore, the relative importance of the information layers and the potential spatial map of the ancient settlements obtained. As a result, the distribution of the settlements specified in each information layers. In addition to extracting and grading environmental information, their impact on the settlement formation in the research area was investigated. Access to water resources had played a significant role in this regard while distance from farms was the next priority. Attention to the importance of elevation factor in the formation of ancient sites, it is worth noting that the elevation factor has been less considered due to all sites situated in the plain of Behshahr, and has the least role in the formation of these settlements.