Ground Truth

Independent, field-tested guidance on drone & handheld mapping for Australian teams: platform selection, accuracy, compliance and data workflows.

DJI Matrice 5TD in flight with its camera gimbal under the nose

Ground Truth

Nov 05, 2026

DJI's next Matrice and the end of the mapping-or-thermal split

For years DJI sold a mapping aircraft and a thermal aircraft. Dock 4, a...

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DJI Terra 5.3 2D thermal infrared map with temperature scale and material emissivity set from the datasetComparison

Ground Truth

Sep 13, 2026

4E vs 4T: Terra 5.3 still does not make them the same aircraft

Terra 5.3 can stitch a 2D thermal map with temperatures. That is an inspection...

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Aerial LiDAR of a stadium and grounds. The shell a drone pass can seeBest Practices

Ground Truth

Sep 03, 2026

One site, two platforms, one point cloud: how to merge drone LiDAR with a handheld scan

Every site has parts the drone cannot see. Field and processing workflow to merge...

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What a Gaussian splat actually is (and why it does not replace your point cloud)Insights

Ground Truth

Sep 03, 2026

What a Gaussian splat actually is (and why it does not replace your point cloud)

Gaussian splatting gives photoreal 3D at ~7.82cm error. LiDAR gives mm-grade measurement. Here's how...

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A drone above a row of trees with laser lines reaching the ground between them

Ground Truth

Aug 11, 2026

What a LiDAR drone kit involves in Australia, and whether you need one

A LiDAR drone is a kit, not a payload: aircraft, sensor, RTK, software and...

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DJI Terra reconstruction of a point cloud used for a repeated mapping outputComparison

Ground Truth

Feb 06, 2026

Terra builds the model. Modify cleans the mesh. Repeated surveys live or die on the coordinate system.

Terra turns a flight into a measurable file. Modify repairs a mesh you already...

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DJI Pilot 2 on a mapping aircraft: mechanical shutter on, dewarping off. The PPK prep the live fix still needsComparison

Ground Truth

Feb 06, 2026

D-RTK 3 Relay versus the Multifunctional Station: which one actually holds the coordinates

Relay Fixed Deployment is a pad link. The Multifunctional Station is the portable base,...

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