3D MODELING OF THE MICHIGAN TECH HUSKY STATUE USING A CLOSE-RANGE PHOTOGRAMMETRIC APPROACH

In fall of 2014 a three meter tall statue of a Husky was erected on the campus of Michigan Technological University. The Husky is Michigan Tech’s mascot and a symbol of the snowy frozen north woods in which the campus is located. The statue was conceived and funded by the universities alumni association and by donors who paid to have bricks engraved around the statue. A team of graduate students in the Integrated Geospatial Technology program came up with the idea of using photogrammetry to model the statue in order to perform accurate measurements of area and volume. This initial idea was taken another step by the need for a course project in close-range photogrammetry and a desire by the alumni association to publish a 3D model of the statue online. This study tests two software packages that can be used to create a photogrammetric model of the statue. A final data set has yet to be collected; however initial attempts have been successful in creating a highly detailed digital model. With the weather clearing and the snow melting work will continue on this project.