HADES - Digital cave archive
Name(s) of graduate(s):
Jens Riesenberg
2026
Description
Caves are essential archives of Earth’s history and provide 10% of the world’s drinking water. However, they are being destroyed by active overexploitation as well as over-fertilization and carelessness.
HADES is an integrated digital system that resolves the conflict between scientific transparency and nature conservation. The design concept links a mobile app with a web-based research platform. Under extreme conditions, the app enables the precise 3D capture of cave contents via LiDAR. A smart cave mode and operation via physical device buttons guarantee usability in damp and dark conditions.
The web platform transfers this raw data into an interdisciplinary open data infrastructure. A 10×10 km grid effectively anonymizes sensitive locations to protect them from vandalism. In this way, HADES connects ecological responsibility with global research in order to preserve our hidden underworlds.