Arborists "X-Ray" a 300 Foot Tall Tree

Zeb Haney, president of Tree Resource, will be leading a team of researchers and working arborists on an expedition to map the interior of a centuries old Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii). The team plans to use sound waves to show the wood density inside the trunk, from base to growing tip.

The wood density measurements will be conducted using a PICUS tomograph. The tomograph sensors, placed strategically around the outside of the trunk, measure wood density by recording the different lengths of time it takes a sound wave to travel through wood. The more dense, or sound the wood, the longer it takes for the wave to reach a sensor. In effect, the tomograph works much like an x-ray machine.

The process for taking these measurements will involve a four person team. Two climbing arborists will work from a rope on either side of the trunk and "tap" on sensors as prompted by a computer. A third and fourth team member will be recieving data from the PICUS unit, and coordinating the process.

It is hoped that the information obtained will enable scientists to better understand the processes trees use to grow, and function at the extreme ends of their possible size.