LiDAR and Photogrammetry Data Evaluation from a Lava Tube Mission in Sicily

As part of the research presented in the paper: “<em>LiDAR and Photogrammetry Data Evaluation from a Lava Tube Mission in Sicily”</em>, conducted within the ESA co-funded Rhizome 2.0 project, this dataset documents the processing of the mapping data of Grotta di Monte Intraleo, a terrestrial lava tube on Mt. Etna, Sicily, serving as an analogue site for extraterrestrial exploration. The data available in this repository builds on previously published data, which is also available unprocessed, and supports comparative evaluations of LiDAR and photogrammetric approaches, informing habitat design strategies for the underground environments of Martian and Lunar lava tubes.The dataset comprises three primary components:<br><strong>Final LiDAR Point Clouds</strong>: This file contains the complete registered and merged point cloud of Grotta di Monte Intraleo, alongside its processing history. Subfolders include the five <em>Unregistered Parts</em> (individual scans), <em>Registered Parts</em> (aligned using CloudCompare’s <em>ICP Registration</em>), and the <em>Merged and Final Cloud</em>. Additionally, the file includes the navigation mesh produced by the quadruped robot during autonomous traversal.<strong>Final Photogrammetric Point Cloud</strong>: This file contains the photogrammetric reconstruction of the lava tube, derived from two separate video footages and processed with the software Agisoft Metashape and CloudCompare. It includes both the <em>Unmerged</em> registered scans and the <em>Merged</em> final cloud.<strong>Cloud-to-Cloud Distance Analyses</strong>: This file provides quantitative comparisons of the datasets. It includes (a) distance analyses between LiDAR and photogrammetric point clouds (additional to the published paper), and (b) analyses of alignment error between individual LiDAR scans (as discussed in the paper).Data processing was performed using the Open Source software <strong>CloudCompare</strong>, which employed<em> ICP registration</em>, <em>Cloud-to-Cloud distance metrics</em>, and <em>Poisson surface reconstruction</em>. Users can explore and visualize the datasets by installing CloudCompare and loading the .bin files.This dataset has been curated to enable reproducible research in robotic mapping, autonomous navigation, and 3D reconstruction of subsurface environments. Beyond terrestrial applications, it contributes to the ongoing evaluation of lava tubes as candidates for sustainable extraterrestrial habitats.