Defining technology operational readiness for the 3D Elevation Program—A plan for investment, incubation, and adoption

The 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) is an acquisition strategy that uses data from commercial remote sensing technologies to create three-dimensional maps of the United States and U.S. territories. Currently, light detection and ranging and interferometric synthetic aperture radar are the two commercial technologies being used to provide three-dimensional information to meet the program’s operational requirements. This is because there is not a well-established process for vendors of new and novel instruments to know when and how 3DEP will accept their technologies into the 3DEP portfolio. The purpose of this plan is to provide a strategy and rules for communication between 3DEP and commercial partners interested in proposing their modalities for use in the program. To accomplish this, 3DEP will also consider how it invests in new technologies and how it disseminates data to and categorizes data for the broader community and the public.