From Static to Dynamic: Modernizing the Sharing of HistoricalPhotogrammetry Datasets

The recovery of historical topography from analogue aerial archives has has become a well-established workflow in geosciences, unlocking high-resolution records of topographic change that were previously inaccessible. However, the standard practice for sharing these results relies on static FTP servers or raw file downloads. Consequently, these datasets often remain difficult to discover, particularly for researchers from other disciplines who cannot easily assess the spatial coverage or relevance of the archive through static file lists. Furthermore, existing web-based visualization solutions often require complex database configurations and advanced full-stack development skills, rendering them inaccessible for many geoscience research groups lacking dedicated software engineers.

In this work, we present a lightweight, open-source web application designed to support the publication of historical photogrammetric data. The design prioritizes portability and ease of deployment for non-developers. Unlike complex Content Management Systems (CMS) that rely on heavy database backends, our tool utilizes a streamlined file-based ingestion pipeline. Researchers can deploy a fully interactive instance by populating a directory structure with standard geospatial vector formats (e.g., Shapefiles, GeoJSON) and point cloud data. The Node.js-based backend automatically parses these inputs to configure the visualization interface, thereby eliminating the need for manual database administration.

We demonstrate the capabilities of the website using a dataset from the Antarctic TMA archive with ~ 250.000 images. The resulting interface facilitates spatio-temporal discovery through an interactive map that visualizes survey footprints, including the residuals between metadata-derived and SfM-estimated positions. This allows users to rapidly assess geometric quality and survey coverage. To extend the platform beyond simple 2D mapping, we present the architectural integration of Potree for browser-based 3D visualization. We discuss the workflow for streaming massive point clouds to the client, a feature designed to transform the website from a passive gallery into an active analytical tool for measurement and validation. Finally, we address the challenge of data distribution by outlining the implementation of a bulk-download utility, structured to allow users to filter and request specific subsets of raw imagery, associated metadata and processed data based on their visual selection.

By providing a self-contained, low-dependency solution, we aim to shift the community standard from static archiving to dynamic, interactive exploration. This tool allows geoscientists to easily share their historical images and reconstructions and make their data truly accessible to the broader scientific community without the overhead of custom software development.