Utah Aerial Imagery Database

The Utah Geological Survey (UGS) Utah Aerial Imagery Database contains aerial photography (air photos) dating from 1935 to 2021; about half of the collection dating before 1960. The collection includes over 225,000 frames (individual photographs), of which over 145,000 have been digitally scanned and are now available online. Associated index sheets, orthophotomaps, mosaics, camera calibration reports, and other materials are also available, along with over 76,000 georeferenced lidar intensity images and over 228,000 frames linked from the U.S. Geological Survey EarthExplorer system.

Most of the frames were acquired in stereoscopic mode, meaning successive frames overlap and create stereo pairs that provide a three-dimensional (3D) image when viewed with a stereoscope. These images have not been georeferenced. A small percentage of the frames are low-sun-angle photographs acquired during the morning or afternoon when shadows highlight certain topographic features, such as fault scarps, or oblique photographs taken at a non-vertical angle to the ground, like a panorama.

Various federal government agencies originally acquired most of these frames for agricultural and/or forest management purposes. This photography is now integral to many geologic projects, such as geologic mapping and geologic-hazard investigations, along with land-use planning and management and other uses. The collection also includes all UGS-acquired imagery. Donations of imagery are very appreciated, so the collection may be more complete and serve as an easily accessible public archive.