The aim of this research was to conduct a comparative analysis of the precision of ground geodetic data versus the three-dimensional (3D) measurements from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), while establishing the impact of herbaceous vegetation on the UAV 3D model. Low (up to 0.5 m high) herbaceous vegetation can impede the establishment of the anthropogenic roughness of the surface. The identification of minor surface alterations, which enables the determination of their anthropogenic origin, is of utmost importance in archaeological investigations. Vegetation cover is regarded as one of the factors influencing the identification of such minor forms of relief. The research was conducted on the Lepelionys Mound (Prienai District Municipality, Lithuania). Ground measurements were obtained using Trimble GPS, and UAV “Inspire 1” was used for taking aerial photographs. Following the data from the ground measurements and aerial photographs, large scale surface maps were drawn and the errors in the measurement of the position of the isolines were compared. The results showed that the largest errors in the positional measurements of fixed objects were conditioned by the height of grass. Grass with a height of up to 0.1 m resulted in discrepancies of up to 0.5 m, whereas grass that was up to 0.5 m high led to discrepancies up to 1.3 m high.

The paper considers conditions and intensity of aeolian and dune slope transformation processes occurring in the wind-blown sand strips of the dunes of the Curonian Spit. An assessment of the intensity of aeolian processes was made based on the analysis of climatic factors and in situ observations. Transformations in aeolian relief forms were investigated based on the comparison of geodetic measurements and measurements of aerial photographs. Changes in micro-terraces of dune slopes were investigated through comparison of the results of repeated levelling and measurements of aerial photographs. The periods of weak, medium, and strong winds were distinguished, and sand moisture fluctuations affecting the beginning of aeolian processes were investigated. The wind-blown sand movements were found to start when sand moisture decreased by 2 % in the surface sand layer and by up to 5 % at a depth of 10 cm. In 2004–2016, the wind-blown sand movements affected the size of reference deflation relief forms: scarp length by 8 %, scarp width by 35 %, pothole length by 80 %, pothole width by 80 %, roll length by 17 %, roll width by 18 %, hollow length by 17 %, and hollow width by 39 %. The elementary relief forms in the leeward eastern slopes of the dunes experienced the strongest transformations. During a period of 5 months, the height of micro-terraces of the eastern slope of the Parnidis Dune changed from 0.05 to 0.64 cm. The change was related to fluctuations in precipitation intensity: in July–August 2016 the amount of precipitation increased 1.6-fold compared with the multiannual average, thus causing the change in the position of terrace ledges by 21 %.

National atlases provide comprehensive information about nature, population, social and economic situation of the country. In 2017 the process of compiling and publishing the National Atlas of Lithuania (Lietuvos Nationalinis Atlasas) was finished. The goal of the authors is: in the context of the whole National Atlas to present a thorough analysis of the structure of content and cartographic visualization methods of Volume III. This volume focusses on social and economic phenomena in Lithuania. The authors discuss the principles of compiling the whole National Atlas of Lithuania and presents its structure in a concise manner. Following the classification of traditional mapping methods, specific examples of mapping in Volume III are presented, advantages of mapping techniques are discussed and the structural analysis of mapping methods is also conducted. The conclusions and the discussion part present the problems encountered while compiling Volume III as well as solutions to them.

Methodological guidelines for preparing raster maps using Adobe PhotoShop software are presented. The questions analysed: digitising maps through scanning, estimating and improving the quality of gathered raster maps, preparing raster maps for different purposes. Article in Lithuanian Skenuotų žemėlapių vaizdo kokybės vertinimas ir gerinimo būdai Adobe PhotoShop programa Santrauka. Nagrinėjamas kartografinių kūrinių vertimo skaitmeniniais skenuojant, gautų rastrinių žemėlapių kokybės vertinimo ir gerinimo bei įvairių defektų šalinimo, taikant Adobe PhotoShop programą, procesas, pateikiamas rastrinio žemėlapio rengimo numatytai paskirčiai algoritmas. Prasminiai žodžiai: skenavimas, rastrinio vaizdo kokybė. Keyword : scanning, raster image quality

This work describes the problems arising during the preparation of cartographical material intended not solely for completely blind or partially sighted people, but also for people having other sight disorders. The proposed methodology is for the research of chromatic reception of the tactile maps. The article describes the functioning principle of the computer program “TC” (Tactile Colour) designed for the automation of research, and the possibilities of processing the obtained results. Article in Lithuanian Taktilinių žemėlapių kūrimo problemos Santrauka. Straipsnyje aptariamos problemos, kylančios rengiant kartografinę medžiagą ne tik visiškai akliems ar silpnai matantiems, bet ir turintiems kitų regėjimo sutrikimų žmonėms. Nagrinėjamos taktilinio žemėlapio paviršiaus jutimo ir spalvinio suvokimo problemos. Siūloma taktilinių žemėlapių spalvinio suvokimo tyrimo metodika. Aprašoma tyrimams automatizuoti sukurtos kompiuterinės programos TC (Tactile Color) veikimo principas ir gaunamų rezultatų apdorojimo galimybės. Raktažodžiai: kartografija, taktilinis žemėlapis, spalvinis suvokimas, aklumas, silpnaregystė. Keyword : cartography, tactile map, color perception, blindness, malaise