1. The exploration or examination of an area to gather information; especially, about the strength and positioning of enemy forces: The army officials reviewed the different approaches to determine which would be the best way to make a reconnaissance of the enemy territory.
2. A preliminary inspection of an area to obtain geographic, hydrographic, or similar data prior to a detailed survey: The reconnaissance of the district to gather terrestrial information was interrupted when the road ran into a pasture and ended.
3. A preliminary research or investigation of something: There was a lot of reconnaissance done in the forested areas so that the report on rare birds in that area would be as complete as possible. © ALL rights are reserved.

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The technique of finding, specifying, and documenting the locations of very old historical sites on the ground by examining different contrasts in the various environments and geographic configurations: In his class of archaeological reconnaissance, James used a special tool called an auger to make holes in the ground so he could extract samples of soil in order to understand the physical features of what once existed in certain areas.