GIS in Education

ORBCOMM Inc. and Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) today announced the launch schedule for ORBCOMM’s second generation (OG2) satellites. The updated plan includes launching the first OG2 prototype satellite on the first Cargo Re-supply Services (CRS) mission in mid-2012, followed closely by an additional launch of two OG2 satellites into a high inclination orbit as a secondary payload in late 2012. In early 2013, SpaceX plans to launch eight to twelve OG2 satellites, and the remainder of the constellation of 18 OG2 satellites is expected to be launched in 2014. All launches are expected to be on Falcon 9 rockets.

In transitioning the launch of the first OG2 prototype spacecraft to the first CRS mission in lieu of the upcoming Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) mission, and adding the launch of two spacecraft toward the second half of 2012, ORBCOMM is able to field additional spacecraft in 2012 resulting in increased coverage, while spreading the deployment across multiple launches thereby reducing risk. SpaceX will fully verify the mission performance on the COTS mission and focus on the successful berthing of the Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS).

The inclusion of two OG2 satellites as a secondary payload on a high inclination insertion orbit will enable ORBCOMM to significantly improve messaging services in polar latitudes. Additionally, it provides the ability to thoroughly test and verify OG2 satellite performance before the primary launch of eight to twelve OG2 satellites.

“We are excited to put ORBCOMM’s second generation satellites into orbit as scheduled, in the most desirable inclinations with the least amount of risk.” said Elon Musk, founder and CEO of SpaceX. “ORBCOMM has been a great partner and we are looking forward to launch.”

“We are pleased that SpaceX has offered ORBCOMM this opportunity to launch two satellites that will help our customers using our OG2 messaging services, and additionally augment service to our maritime Automatic Identification System (AIS) customers that benefit from coverage at higher inclinations,” said Marc Eisenberg CEO of ORBCOMM. “The net outcome of these revised launch plans has us launching OG2 satellites at a faster pace with less risk.”

The parameters of the Falcon 9 launch of eight to twelve OG2 satellites as its primary mission in early 2013 will be optimized to ensure the best coverage for the enhanced OG2 messaging services. ORBCOMM expects several OG2 satellites will be directly inserted into a specific plane to immediately improve messaging services while other satellites will be put into a transfer orbit and drift to their final orbit location. ORBCOMM expects the drifting operation will take several months to occur and that the satellites will be functional and providing messaging services during this period.

Sri Lanka's marine researchers are planning to use aerial and underwater unmanned vehicles with remote sensing technology to study the oceans around the country, officials said.

Sri Lanka's National Aquatic Research Agency (NARA) wants to team up with the island's air force to use unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for marine search.

"They have experience from the war, which matches with the research needs," NARA chairman Hiran Jayewardene said.

Sri Lanka's military used UAVs extensively in a war with Tamil Tiger separatists which ended in May 2009.

Jayewardene, a marine researcher with international experience was invited back to head NARA, which was set up 30 years ago with his participation by the island's current fisheries minister Rajitha Senaratne.

Jayewardene helped develop methods now used to demarcate ocean bed allocations by the United Nations at the time he was a doctoral student at Cambridge University, Senaratne said.

NARA researchers are also in talks with the French oceanographic and geophysical research unit to collaborate on the use of underwater gliders for marine research.

"These gliders can be pre-programmed to go on a path, collect data and return," Kanapathipilli Arulanandan, who heads NARA's oceanography unit, said.

The gliders have sensors which can collect data on underwater conditions, including temperature and light levels at various depths, officials said.

"This is a wonderful tool for a small country like ours. We are hoping that the French will collaborate," Jayewardene said.

"It runs at approximately a one kilometer an hour, very slowly. And it uses very little energy and it can go deep down into the ocean; it can be programmed to gather data. It can go up and down it can go in a zigzag pattern, it can go in a vertical pattern.

"It periodically comes to the surface and it transmits data through satellite to the shore."

SOURCE Lanka Business Online

Bentley shares the innovation in best practices among the infrastructure professionals who make these projects possible by featuring their outstanding achievements across the globe in The Year in Infrastructure series of publications.

Today, Bentley released The Year in Infrastructure 2011 Edition. It is immediately available at www.bentley.com/YearInInfrastructure.

This 240-page yearbook highlights the extraordinary work of Bentley users improving the world’s infrastructure. It features descriptions and color images of the more than 300 project nominations recognized and 20 winners honored at the 2011 Be Inspired Awards ceremony, held last month at Bentley’s Be Inspired: Thought Leadership in Infrastructure event in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Bentley’s Be Inspired Awards competition acknowledges outstanding achievement and innovation in infrastructure design, construction, and operations. The winners are selected by independent panels of expert jurors representing a broad range of infrastructure disciplines.

There's a new cloud ebook from Esri! Cloud computing furnishes technological capabilities that are delivered on demand as services via the Internet. This new e-book shows how cloud technology and architecture can be leveraged by the GIS community.

Cloud computing provides opportunities for organizations to become more cost-effective, productive, and flexible to rapidly deliver new capabilities.
The pay-as-you-go pricing model is often quite flexible when renting cloud applications or infrastructure, allowing prospective cloud clients to "try before they buy," while existing cloud consumers can pay in advance to take advantage of volume discounts and satisfy budget forecasting requirements. Renting assets shifts the duty of maintaining on-premises data centers to the cloud vendor, alleviating the customer's responsibility for software and hardware maintenance, ongoing operation, and support.

Ideally, cloud adopters should be confident that they are consuming state- of-the-art systems that are highly reliable and flexible enough to handle large traffic fluctuations. The burden, then, is on the vendor to scale and continually reinvest in the on-demand IT architecture and service so that consumers are consistently provided with a robust, updated solution.

Moving parts of the corporate data and computing center to the cloud also reduces the amount of fragmented infrastructure, driving down up-front capital spending. As monies are reallocated to be invested in core business, other initiatives could be launched to provide direct value to customers and employees, giving the organization a competitive advantage.

With increasing outsourcing and offshoring, leading to the creation of a global workforce, team productivity depends on the power of networks and the Internet as a common platform. As such, cloud services are available 24/7, accessible from any browser on any device regardless of time zone. This provides faster, easier access for workers to do their jobs, allowing competitive differentiation for the organization and, likewise, retaining and attracting valuable and talented staff.

Download the ebook here in PDF.

Postdoctoral Scientists on Ecology / Earth System / Conservation Science at Microsoft Research, Cambridge, UK.

The Computational Ecology and Environmental Science (CEES) group at Microsoft Research seeks postdoctoral scientist applicants for two positions. The initial tenure is for two years, with the possibility of a third year extension.

Conservation Science: One position within the Conservation@Microsoft research unit. The goal of the research carried out within the group is to develop and accelerate better, predictive, actionable science in areas of societal (and by extension policy) importance. Areas of potential work may include (but are not limited to) conservation impact assessment, risk assessment, agricultural modelling, food security, early warning signals / leading indicators, ecosystem modelling, land-use change modelling, species discovery and extinction modelling.

Earth System Modelling: One position for an applicant able to make an important contribution to a pioneering new approach to earth system modelling. The CEES group is developing and refining approaches to producing more accurate, comparable and compatible earth system models and their components. We are seeking first-rate scientists with a passionate interest in, and scientific and technical ability to dramatically improve models of key earth system components such as marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Candidates must be interested in and be able and motivated to tackle significant methodological challenges (e.g., enabling detailed model intercomparisons, in accounting for, inferring, and propagating multiple sources of uncertainty and in enabling the identification of the optimal spatial, temporal and abstraction resolution).

We are looking for exceptional candidates. You will be a highly motivated early-career scientist with strong quantitative modelling skills, computational proficiency, an understanding of and desire to do research at the science-policy interface, and proven track record of publications in leading peer-reviewed journals. You will be expected to produce leading scientific research in the chosen area of work, publish results in top scientific journals, and interact closely with other members of the group and group collaborators.

These positions offer the opportunity to join a unique scientific lab that affords the successful candidate the opportunity to undertake world-leading scientific research and develop a position of future leadership in a chosen field. The Computational Science Lab at Microsoft Research offers a stimulating and rewarding working environment. The positions come with a very attractive salary and comprehensive benefits.

Applicants for the Conservation Science position should send a CV, contact details of three referees, and a short statement of interest to Dr. Lucas Joppa: lujoppa@microsoft.com.

Applicants for the Earth System Modelling position should send the above materials to Dr. Matthew Smith: Matthew.Smith@microsoft.com.

All applications must be received by February 6th, 2012.

China will launch its first-ever high-resolution geological mapping satellite for civil purposes next January, according to official sources.

The Ziyuan III satellite will be launched aboard a Long March 4B carrier rocket from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in northern China's Shanxi province, according to a conference held on Monday for the directors of surveying, mapping and geoinformation administrations across the nation.

The Ziyuan III's surveying covers the entire area between 84 degrees north latitude and 84 degrees south latitude.

The satellite will be used to conduct geological mapping, carry out surveys on land resources, help with natural disaster-reduction and prevention, and lend assistance to farming, water conservation, urban planning and other sectors.

The Ziyuan III satellite project was inaugurated on March 2008, and also includes gravity satellites, radar satellites and follow-up satellites for the Ziyuan III, so as to obtain geoinformation under all kinds of meteorological conditions.

SOURCE xinhuanet.com

The Regional Geographic Information Network (RGIN) has evaluated the proposed data standards and data policy of the Climate Change and Risk Reduction Information Support System Project (CRISP) to be presented to the RGIN meeting on January 27, 2012 and to the Regional Development Council in its 2012 1st Quarter Meeting for final approval and adoption.

The data standards and data policies include the information on Geographic Information System data structures for the project, and the data sharing policy and responsibilities of the members and other end-users of the GIS data.

During the review, immediate necessity of data during natural calamities and the cost of sustaining the system are also explored as factors to consider in the proposed sharing policy. The members also suggested to include the guidelines on data updating, uploading and deleting as well as the distribution and regulation of such to third parties.

All recommendations will be incorporated in the Operations Manual of the system.

The CRISP, a joint undertaking of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United States Agency for International Development (AusAID) and National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), is a web-based information system that aims to establish a databank in support to climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction (CCA-DRR).

The implementation of the project is expected to run starting first quarter of next year. The CRISP will be adapted in all regions after its successful piloting region 2.

According to NEDA Knowledge Management Division Chief Ronilo H. Bulseco, the three cities in the region, Tuguegarao, Cauayan and Santiago shall also be encouraged to become part of the RGIN and they shall also be briefed on the project for wider and more accurate information system in local development planning.

SOURCE PIA.gov.ph

By the Health Research and Information Division of the Economic & Social Research Institute.

This report presents information on discharges from 57 Irish acute public hospitals participating in the Hospital In-Patient Enquiry (HIPE) scheme in 2010. Hospitals collect and return administrative, demographic and clinical information for each discharge to the ESRI on a monthly basis. The HIPE system is supported by the HSE which, together with the Department of Health, receive the data on a monthly basis from the ESRI. The hospitals that collect the data have available to them a reporting system which enables immediate and continuous access to the current data for management and other purposes.

At the national level, HIPE data can inform policy decisions and developments in areas such as hospital budgeting, service planning, workload measurement etc.

The report provides information on the number of day patient and in-patient discharges, together with their demographic characteristics and geographical distribution. The number and type of diagnoses and procedures reported for discharges, together with the case mix treated, are also profiled. Marking a change to previous reports, the demographic and morbidity analyses for Maternity discharges are presented separately to enable a more comprehensive overview of trends in this area.

MAIN FINDINGS OF THE 2010 REPORT

Total Discharges

- Over 1.44 million discharges were reported by the participating hospitals compared to 1.41 million discharges in 2009 – an increase of almost 3%.
- Day patients accounted for 59% of total discharges in 2010, an increase of 4% since 2009. Given that day cases accounted for 53% of total discharges in 2006, the mean increase over the period 2006-2010 was 6.6%.
- In 2010 in-patients accounted for 41% of total discharges of which 60% were emergency in-patients, 18% were elective in-patients and 21% were Maternity in-patients. In-patients used just over 3.57 million bed days in 2010, a decrease of 1% from 2009.
- Females accounted for 53% of total discharges.
- Public patients accounted for 81% of total discharges (78% of total in-patient bed days) while private patients accounted for the remaining 19% of total discharges (22% of total in-patient bed days).
- Medical card holders accounted for 54% of total discharges.
- Almost one-third of total discharges were aged 65 years and older, an increase of 5% between 2009 and 2010 and a mean increase of 5.6% between 2006 and 2010. This age group also used the highest proportion of in-patient bed days (40%), an increase of almost 1% on the 2009 figure.

Non-Maternity Discharges

- Excluding Maternity discharges, in-patients who stayed for more than 30 days accounted for 3% of in-patient discharges and 32% of in-patient bed days.
- The mean length of stay for acute in-patient discharges (excl. Maternity) was 4.9 days. This varied by hospital type as voluntary hospitals recorded a mean length of stay of 5.8 days for acute in-patient discharges (excl. Maternity) compared to 4.4 days reported for county hospitals.

Maternity Discharges

- 72,675 women gave birth in acute public hospitals reporting to HIPE in 2010.
- Normal (non-instrumental) deliveries accounted for almost six in every ten deliveries, followed by Caesarean section at 26%. Instrumental deliveries accounted for the remainder.
- Almost 24% of women who delivered and who were treated on a public basis had a Caesarean section. Of these Caesarean section deliveries, 44% were elective.
- Almost 35% of women who delivered and who were treated on a private basis had a Caesarean section. Of these Caesarean section deliveries, 60% were elective.

For further information please contact:

Prof. Miriam Wiley (Health Research and Information Division, ESRI), 087 226 7787 (mobile).

PCI Geomatics, a world leading developer of geo-imaging software and systems, announces it has released its Geomatica 2012 Service Pack 1.

This release contains maintenance fixes and includes all updates delivered since Geomatica 2012. The update is available for both Windows and Linux based operating systems.

It is recommended that customers using Geomatica 2012 download and install this service pack at their earliest convenience to ensure the highest-quality experience when working with the software. The service pack can be accessed by visiting the updates page at www.pcigeomatics.com/updates.

Customers who have any questions or run into issues with the installation should contact PCI’s Support team at www.pcigeomatics.com/support.

About PCI Geomatics
PCI Geomatics is a world leading developer of software and systems to process aerial and satellite imagery. The company provides integrated Esri imagery workflows, standalone image processing capability, and large volume processing throughput; giving customers the ability to produce high quality ortho-mosaic products and derived information for any project. Find out more at www.pcigeomatics.com

Headwall Photonics has announced that its Micro-Hyperspec imaging sensor is being successfully deployed aboard very small commercial UAVs to help agriculturalists and researchers monitor vegetation over wide areas. Accurate spectral scenes of farmlands and crop fields can now be quickly rendered using this technology. Nutrient stress conditions of crops and fruit, for example, can be gathered by placing these miniaturized hyperspectral imagers on long-duration commercial UAVs, which crisscross farmland to yield a mosaic of data-rich images.

Headwall worked collaboratively with Pablo Zarco-Tejada, a Principal Investigator at the Instituto de Agricultura Sostenible (IAS) in Spain. "This is a critically useful deployment of our technology by a leading researcher in the remote sensing community," said David Bannon, CEO of Headwall Photonics. "Hyperspectral imaging allows agricultural experts across the globe to make crop and vegetation decisions that will enrich the lives of everyone." Bannon noted the need for precision hyperspectral imaging solutions that are small, light, and rugged. "Size, weight and power requirements are important concerns when deploying this technology aboard airborne vehicles, so we developed and engineered the aberration-corrected Micro-Hyperspec sensor with that in mind," said Bannon.

With a small size and fully integrated payload weight of less than 1.5 lbs., the Micro-Hyperspec imaging sensor is an ideal sensor for very small UAV platforms. The Micro-Hyperspec is available in VNIR configurations (380-1000nm) and NIR configurations (900-1700nm). The Micro-Hyperspec is available as a complete airborne configuration consisting of a small, accurate GPS/INS unit, data processing engine with high capacity, solid state drive, and application software necessary to acquire and display hyperspectral datacubes with exceptional spectral and spatial resolution.

Pablo Zarco-Tejada commented on the success of the collaborative effort between IAS and Headwall: "We've pioneered this technology aboard unmanned airborne platforms and the data we're able to collect about agriculture and croplands helps us make life-enriching decisions for everyone." A mosaic of the flight patterns yields a tremendous amount of useful data about the vegetation below. The use of long-duration UAVs means better stability aloft, and larger data volumes stored during each flight. "Headwall's Micro-Hyperspec technology and their applications support have allowed us to achieve what matters most in our field of work: outstanding spectral/spatial resolution and high dynamic range in a rugged, small-form-factor package," concluded Zarco-Tejada.

Job position available: Assistant Professor, Dept. of Geography and Earth Sciences, Univ. of North Carolina at Charlotte

The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Department of Geography and Earth Sciences is recruiting a tenure-track, assistant professor specializing in environmental remote sensing for appointment in July 2012. Required qualifications include:

1) a doctoral degree in geography, the earth or atmospheric sciences or a related field at the time of appointment;

2) the ability to develop and maintain an externally funded research program on remote sensing of the natural and/or built environment;

3) the ability to teach remote sensing courses at the graduate and undergraduate levels to diverse student populations; and

4) the ability to contribute to one or more of the themes of the Department’s interdisciplinary teaching and research mission.

The successful candidate will play a major role in expanding the geospatial modeling and technology component of our graduate and undergraduate programs while contributing to the Department’s interdisciplinary teaching and research mission in the geographical and natural sciences. The successful candidate is expected to maintain an active, scholarly research agenda that includes advising students in the Department’s graduate programs, including the MA and Ph.D. in Geography, MS in Earth Sciences, and Ph.D. in Infrastructure and Environmental Systems. The successful candidate is also expected to develop new graduate courses in her/his area of expertise and teach two existing undergraduate courses on the science and application of remote sensing. Preference will be given to candidates who strengthen bridges across the geospatial, natural, and social sciences curricula.

The Department is an interdisciplinary community of natural, social, and technical scientists with over 30 faculty members. UNC Charlotte is a rapidly growing doctoral university located in the state’s largest metropolitan area. Over 25,000 students are currently enrolled at the University. The Department, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and the University are strongly committed to creating and maintaining a diverse community in which all students, staff, and faculty can work, learn, and live in an environment of respect and support. We welcome applications from candidates who will foster these goals. We encourage applications from women, minorities, and individuals from underrepresented groups.

Review of applications will begin January 30, 2012 and continue until the position is filled. Applications must be submitted electronically at https://jobs.uncc.edu and must include:

1) a letter of application describing research interests, teaching interests, and teaching philosophy;

2) a full curriculum vita; and

3) the names of three referees.

We encourage prospective candidates to review our web sites for the Department (www.geoearth.uncc.edu) and the Center for Applied GIScience (www.gis.uncc.edu) prior to applying. For additional information, contact Dr. Ross Meentemeyer at 704-687-5944 or rkmeente@uncc.edu.

Following several months of discussions, meetings and market testing, Cheddar-based Blom UK, a leading provider of aerial photography and digital mapping services, has created a complete solution for effectively managing vegetation and trees close to power lines, and is rolling this out as an offering to the UK power industry.

Blom's solution utilises accurate height data taken from a LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) survey, along with detailed CAD models of the power lines to determine vegetation risk and proximity to lines and towers.

This is combined with wide ranging weather data for the region to calculate the position of the power lines at the time of heaviest use, in order to replicate the lowest "sag" of the power line relative to the surrounding vegetation and trees.

Greg Lewis, Sales and Business Development Executive at Blom UK, said: "Distinct from similar products developed by UK geospatial data providers, Blom chose to work with their experienced sister company in Norway to adapt the Blom forest inventory products offered in the Scandinavian countries, to suit the UK market in providing accurate tree attribution information".

By collecting large amounts of LiDAR data, the industries vegetation managers are able to focus their efforts only on the trees and vegetation that require cutting, allowing a more efficient, targeted approach to be put in place.

With the Electricity Supply Regulations (ESR) of 1988 being replaced with the Electricity Safety, Quality and Continuity Regulations (ESQCR) in 2002, (which set out guidance to improve the resilience and reliability of overhead electricity distribution networks), electricity companies are coming under more pressure than ever to ensure that the increasing demand for electricity across the UK is met and distributed effectively.

Many of the UK power companies are starting to realize the numerous benefits from using LiDAR as an asset management tool, going further than simply providing a cloud of points. Blom are now offering a range of value added products and complimentary services, not only to vegetation managers but also the engineers for profiling and design.

Greg commented: "This could be the first step towards a shift in the culture of the UK power industry, towards fully adopting new technologies and non invasive survey techniques".

SOURCE blomasa.com

Meeting in Brussels today, the 29 ministers of the ESA-EU Space Council underlined the importance of space systems for security. They drew attention to the role of satellite systems - particularly Galileo, EGNOS and GMES - as the backbone for improving Europe's response to emergencies.

Pre-operational Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) services are already available. The ministers from EU and ESA Member States urged the European Commission to accelerate the transition to full operations, in support of EU external actions.

The ministers reaffirmed GMES as a priority for the EU, and urged the European Commission to take the necessary and timely actions to secure the continuity of the programme and the services it supplies to users.

Ministers highlighted the fact that the policy governing the availability of GMES data is crucial to the secure use of services and to the development of sustainable markets in the value-adding sector.

GMES will work hand-in-hand with the high-accuracy Public Regulated Service of Europe’s Galileo navigation satellite system.

Ministers also stressed that satellite communications represent a key capability in any crisis management operation, especially when ground infrastructures are damaged or destroyed.

As well as calling on the European Commission to ensure the optimal use of space solutions in Europe’s coordination of civil protection, the ministers also turned their attention to the need to protect the satellites.

Ministers expressed concern about the risks that space weather and space debris can pose to space assets. They took good note of the recently established user requirements for systems designed to monitor and protect space assets and called on the EU, ESA and their Member States initially to exploit fully all existing capacities in this area.

For further information, please contact:

ESA Media Relations Office
Communication Department
Tel: + 33 1 53 69 72 99
Fax: + 33 1 53 69 76 90
Email: media@esa.int

I am currently attending the AGU 2011 Fall Meeting in San Francisco. Right now, I am inside a session on LiDAR. Here are some interesting studies you may want to check out if you are into LiDAR and its applications to Ecosystem Structure.

Discrete Lidar Pseudo-Waves Versus True Waveform lidar: Are They Fungible for Forest Structural Analyses? by Jordan D. Muss; Naikoa Aguilar-Amuchastegui; Eric Salas; Geoffrey M. Henebry

ABSTRACT BODY: In the past three decades, two types of lidar systems, discrete and waveform, have been used to estimate forest structure, including height, biomass, and basal area. While there are many similarities between these two systems, their fundamental differences are the manner in which the laser backscatter is recorded and, to a lesser degree, how these data are analyzed. Typically, discrete systems record far fewer returns per pulse, but provide fine-scale, three-dimensional positions of reflecting surfaces, whereas waveform lidar captures much more of the backscattered energy at the expense of knowing the precise location of the reflectors. Despite these differences, these data have, overwhelmingly, been analyzed using frequency-based statistics, even though this results in highly correlated metrics and may sacrifice a wealth of structural information that could be latent within the waveforms. Some recent studies have challenged this approach and introduced methods to aggregate discrete lidar data into pseudo-waves, and investigated alternative methods to examine these waves to improve assessments of forest-structure. We propose that the differences between pseudo-waves and true waveforms are minor, and that the same wave-based metrics can be used to analyze either surface. To test these propositions, pseudo-waves are being created from discrete lidar data collected in the spring of 2006, over the La Selva Biological Station in Costa Rica. These pseudo-waves are being geographically co-registered to full-waveform data collected in 2005 over the same area using the LVIS sensor. The two sets of waves will be normalized so that similarities in their shapes can be evaluated, after which we will demonstrate that wave-based metrics, which have been used to relate pseudo-waves to estimate canopy heights, basal area, and biomass in temperate forests can also be used to describe forest structure in the tropics.

Studying the Impact of the Three Dimensional Canopy Structure on LIDAR Waveforms Evaluated with Field Measurements by Liang Xu; Yuri Knyazikhin; Ranga B. Myneni; Alan H. Strahler; Crystal Schaaf; Alexander S. Antonarakis; Paul R. Moorcroft

ABSTRACT BODY: The three-dimensional structure of a forest – its composition, density, height, crown geometry, within-crown foliage distribution and properties of individual leaves – has a direct impact on the lidar waveform. The pair-correlation function defined as the probability of finding simultaneously phytoelements at two points is the most natural and physically meaningful descriptor of the canopy structure over wide range of scales. The stochastic radiative transfer equations naturally admit this measure and thus provide a powerful means to investigate 3D canopy from space. NASA’s Airborne Laser Vegetation Imaging Sensor (LVIS) and ground based data on canopy structure acquired over 5 sites in New England, California and La Selva (Costa Rica) tropical forest were analyzed to assess the impact of 3D canopy structure on lidar waveform and the ability of stochastic radiative transfer equations to simulate the 3D effects. Our results suggest the pair correlation function is sensitive to horizontal and vertical clumping, crown geometry and spatial distribution of trees. Its use in the stochastic radiative transfer equation allows us to accurately simulate the effects of 3D canopy structure on the lidar waveform. Specifically, we found that (1) attenuation of the waveform occurs at a slower rate than 1D models predict; this may result in an underestimation of foliage profile if 3D effects are ignored; (2) 1D model is unable to match simulated waveform and measured surface reflectance, i.e., an unrealistic high value of surface reflectance needs to be used to simulate ground return of sparse vegetation; (3) spatial distribution of trees has a strong impact on the lidar waveform. Simple analytical models of the pair-correlation function will also be discussed.

Here are more:

LiDAR bore-sight calibration: a comparative study
Gil R. Gonçalves; Andre Jalobeanu

Intensity normalization and automatic gain control correction of airborne LiDAR data for classifying a rangeland ecosystem
Rupesh Shrestha; Nancy F. Glenn; Lucas Spaete; Jessica Mitchell

Automated Tree Crown Delineation and Biomass Estimation from Airborne LiDAR data: A Comparison of Statistical and Machine Learning Methods
Colin J. Gleason; Jungho Im

Structural Biomass Estimation from L-band Interferometric SAR and Lidar (Invited)
Robert N. Treuhaft; Bruce D. Chapman; Fabio Goncalves; Scott Hensley; Joao R. dos Santos; Paulo A. Graca; Luciano Dutra

Estimation of Above Ground Biomass in the Everglades National Park using X-, C-, and L-band SAR data and Ground-based LiDAR
Emanuelle A. Feliciano ; Shimon Wdowinski; Matthew Potts; Sang-Wan Kim

The BlomWEB Viewer is a front end web application for Blom's geo server, BlomURBEX. Following development of the BlomURBEX API, Blom is pleased to announce that version 3.1 of the BlomWEB viewer is now available to customers. The development of Version 3.1 has been focused on the addition of new capabilities, demo scenarios, integration with the new BlomSTREET product as well as allowing for greater customization.

This release means that BlomWEB now contains the following functionalities:

Full integration with BlomSTREET™ spherical imagery including measurement capabilities
LiDAR viewer - allowing users to view and interact with LiDAR datasets online
New "DEMO SCENARIOS" for the Blom product range, including BlomSTEREO™ and BlomMETRO™
Plugins upload - this ability provides developers with a new interface for customizing BlomWEB Viewer™.
Symbology editor for vector layers
New annotations interface
Routing capabilities from multiple providers
BlomWEB can now include parameters in the URL to open the app, for instance, at a given coordinates.

The BlomWEB viewer is able to display all of Blom data models, including Blom's unique database of high resolution vertical & oblique aerial imagery, height data and the recently released Blom3D™ datasets. It provides easy access to demo layers and datasets while also allowing the integrating of both 2D, 3D and LiDAR capabilities in one unique application. Blom has developed the BlomWEB Viewer™ to provide their customers with the flexibility of accessing BlomURBEX™ from either a ready-made application, web API's, mobile SDK's or GIS plug-ins. The viewer showcases the functionality that is provided in the API's, for example navigation, search and measurement while retaining the speed and stability of the BlomURBEX™ service.

BlomWEB Viewer™ is available at: http://www.blomwebviewer.com. Contact us for a copy of the user manual or to provide instructions on the access and use of the platform.

A scientist at Rochester Institute of Technology is giving NASA better tools for assessing changes in the fragile polar region. John Kerekes won a three-year, $561,130 grant from NASA to help the space agency’s scientists better interpret remotely sensed data collected with laser light.

The technology—known as lidar or “light detection and ranging”—measures altitude by shooting pulses of laser light, or photons, at a target. The light pulses reach the surface and bounce back to the sensor. The detector measures the distance traveled and forms an image of the shape pulse by pulse. The processed data creates three-dimensional renderings or digital elevation maps that scientists can use to measure changes in the polar ice. Future NASA missions, such as the upcoming Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2, or ICESat-2, will use lidar devices. Slated for launch in 2016, ICESat-2 will measure ice-surface topography and assess changes to Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets and sea ice.

“The ICESat-2 science team wants to be able to measure annual changes in ice-sheet thickness to within a few millimeters, averaged over the entire ice sheet,” says Kerekes, an associate professor in the Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science at RIT.

“Take a flat mirror—a pulse of light comes down, bounces off the mirror and you know exactly how long it took,” he explains. “But real ice sheets and glaciers have narrow crevasses that may be only a few meters wide and tens of meters deep. And the laser pulse is going to interact with that complex surface in a way that will be very different than if it were just a flat surface.”

Kerekes’ team will give lidar a trial run in a simulated arctic environment well before NASA launches the technology on its future mission. They will use the Digital Imaging and Remote Sensing Image Generation tool, developed at RIT, to model the light-scattering radiometric behavior of the Earth and its atmosphere in a computer-coded world of glaciers and icebergs orbited by a simulated ICESat-2.

“DIRSIG is capable of simulating scenes that reflect the physics and radiometry found in the real world as compared to simulations that were designed for a movie, where it doesn’t have to have the right physical units; it just has to look good,” Kerekes says.

The polar scene is a stage for working out the complicated geometry of ice nooks and crevasses, dusted with snow or completely covered. It allows the team to trace the light pulses and write algorithms accounting for the multiple scattering that delays the photons’ return to the sensor. Modeling how the detector works on a computer will advance the science of using laser data to interpret the shape of an ice sheet in the real world. The simulation also doubles as an inexpensive way to test potential design changes or shortfalls in component performances.

Input from geophysicist Beata Csatho, associate professor of geology at University at Buffalo, will provide essential details to the mini-Arctic world. Her expertise in polar topics with a remote-sensing perspective will layer the scenes with realistic physical details of ice sheets and glaciers and lend relevance to testing the laser sensor’s signal processing methods via computer software. Csatho, who is also the leader of the NASA ICESat-2 Science Definition Team, understands the challenges of interpreting data collected from airplanes and satellites.

“Ice sheets and glaciers play a critical role in the Earth’s climate system and they are major contributors to global sea level rise,” Csatho says. “Ice sheets and outlet glaciers often change rapidly exhibiting a complex pattern, controlled by interactions with climate, oceanographic and geological processes. Simulations will allow us to develop and test algorithms to process ICESat-2 data for mapping the surface as accurately as possible, even in adverse conditions such when blowing snow or ice fog restrict the visibility or the lidar beam is reflected from a surface covered by melting snow or large snow crystals.”

“It’s a complementary collaboration,” Kerekes adds. “We’re working on modeling the instrument—how it works; how the light interacts with the surface. The UB team is providing an understanding of how we should construct a surface model and what are the most important issues in terms of the NASA science community.”

In addition to Csatho, Kerekes’ team includes Scott Brown, scientist in RIT’s Center for Imaging Science, who will write the computer code approximating the polar environment; Jiashu Zhang, a doctoral student in the center, who will apply Brown’s detailed simulations to key problem areas, such as characterizing dynamic deformations in ice sheets throughout different scenes; and Anton Schenk, research professor at UB, who is using photogrammetry and remote sensing to develop detailed surface models of different ice surface types for the simulations.

Kerekes and Csatho will attend an ICESat-2 Science Definition Team meeting in Washington, D.C., in January to meet with other scientists involved with the data analysis.

SOURCE Rit.edu

“GeoEye-2 satellite is scheduled for launch in spring 2013. It will become commercially available during the 2013 imaging season”, - assured Senior Channel Manager of the GeoEye company Andrei Shumakov. A thematic workshop “GeoEye’s New Capabilities. From Online Access to Onsite Content Management and Web Dissemination. Advanced Analysis and Imagery Processing” was held on November 30 within the frames of the 5th International Conference “Earth from Space – the Most Effective Solutions”.

GeoEye company is the Operator of the very high resolution IKONOS and GeoEye-1 satellites. Besides working on GeoEye-2 satellite the designing of the GeoEye-3 satellite is already initiated.

EyeQ software system is one of the new developments of the company. It enables to provide data to the customers via web-services on-line.

- One of the advantages of the EyeQ system is the possibility of fast access to spatial data and its duplication. For example, access to updated spatial information must be instantaneous in case of emergencies monitoring and response. This is exactly was EyeQ system assures in compliance with the pre-arranged agreements. Different agencies and organizations, including mass media are among our customers, - noted Andrei Shumakov.

One of the most efficient systems, operating based in EyeQ system, runs under EnhancedView program of the US government. This system has been operated on for one year already and contains highly detailed satellite images of the territory over 2 million square kilometers. The system users from any part of the world enjoy quick access to data. Over 1000 people can be using the system at the same time. Over 100 GB of data is being downloaded every day.

The first commercial partner for EyeQ service in 2011 was the Japanese Japan Space Imaging (JSI) company. On November 29 within the frames of the 5th International Conference “Earth from Space…” JSI’s CEO & President Yoichi Kamiyama spoke about how EyeQ services are implemented and managed in Japan.

Building Navigator Widget for Esri Flex Viewer 2.4. Designed for the Esri Flex Viewer 2.4, the Building Navigator widget allows users to click on a building footprint and drill down inside the building to view floors, spaces, and other data layers. In addition to supporting floor by floor navigation, this widget can be configured to show different types of floor plans such as vector information from CAD, raster images like an Emergency Action Plans, and other ArcGIS Server map services for things like assets or personnel. By enabling users to quickly and easily navigate and query buildings, floors, and spaces, the Building Navigator widget provides answers to a wide range of spatial facility questions.

“By providing this widget to the GIS community we hope to make it easier for people to get started doing facility GIS” said Benton Yetman, PenBay’s Director of Strategic Technology Initiatives, “and we are anxious to see how people use the widget in their existing Flex applications.”

The functionality of the standalone widget demonstrates the value of bringing floor plans into GIS, and allows users to take the first step in understanding what that means inside their organization. As the global leader in Facility GIS, PenBay’s InVision Solutions Suite is designed to apply the visual and analytical value of GIS to stages of facility management and public safety life cycles by providing tools for emergency preplanning and integrating with maintenance and asset management software. These solutions support organizations across the entire facility lifecycle including tools for facility managers (InVision for FM) and public safety agencies (InVision Secure), as well as tools for facility data collection and conversion.

PenBay’s free Building Navigator widget is available through ArcGIS.com, or directly from PenBay’s website.

Contact: Benton Yetman, Director of Strategic Technology Initiatives at PenBay Solutions, Email Contact, (917) 403-5488.

The City of Huber Heights, Ohio is proud to announce an exciting opportunity for you to attend two sessions on leveraging Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for your agency. Learn more on how GIS can benefit your overall GIS initiatives.

Who should attend? Decision makers, stake-holders, (IT Directors, GIS Coordinators, Assessors, 911 Coordinators, Planners, Public works, Public Safety officials etc.)

Huber Heights, Ohio
6121 Taylorsville Road
Huber Heights, Ohio 45424

GIS Manager's Workshop
December 13th, 2011
9:30am – 11:30am

10 Ways to Improve Your Public Safety Using GIS
December 13th, 2011
1:00pm – 3:00pm

These workshops have been grant funded and as such are FREE to you. Sign up for the free seminar here.

Geospatial World Forum 2012 shall be the first truly global geospatial industry event and aims to bring together about 2500 participants from different parts of the world. With its existing network and large presence in Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and Africa, Geospatial World and its quest to develop and build up similar level of engagement with European and North American geospatial community, it offers the most promising opportunity to have a true geospatial industry event focusing on all the stakeholders representing all the major economies and regions.

About
As the premium global geospatial industry event, Geospatial World Forum will bring the stakeholders —solution providers, policy makers as well as users— to a single platform, providing unparalleled opportunities for discussion, debate and interaction.

Geospatial World Forum is a platform of convergence for all stakeholders of global geospatial community, policy makers and end users of geospatial information. Geospatial World Forum is a confluence of a variety of activities in the form of plenary, symposia, seminars, workshops, panel discussions, exchange forums- covering the vast gamut of technology, application, policy, use cases from the region and from across the world. The Forum will also host a number of additional events in parallel by its partners like board meetings, executive meetings, user meetings, partner/reseller meetings and so on.

Theme
The theme of Geospatial World Forum 2012 shall be 'Geospatial Industry & World Economy'. In tune with the theme, the conference shall touch upon the dimensions and directions of geospatial industry and shall attempt to bring forward and project its utility, contribution and relevance to several important industries contributing to the economy of the world.

Convergence and integration of geospatial technology with mainstream technologies like IT, telecommunication, and Internet, has enabled the harnessing of true potential of geospatial information and technology for improving the productivity and efficiency of enterprises across different industry domains including energy, mining, oil and gas, telecommunication, infrastructure, transportation, water, agriculture, local governance and business enterprises. In other words, geospatial industry is developing solutions and application which are very critical and useful for the growth of major industries driving global economy, and in a way, contributing directly to the world economy. Under this theme, a range of plenaries, symposiums, and panel discussions shall be organised involving the stakeholders from specific industries to appropriately project and steer the discussions and deliberations to line with the theme of the conference.

Details:
Geospatial World Forum 2012
23 - 27 April, 2012
Amsterdam, Netherlands

Register for the forum here.

Images of the Amazon-1, the first satellite developed entirely in Brazil, to be launched in 2013 and will feature powerful cameras to monitor tropical forests, will be offered free of charge to neighboring countries, official sources said today. The images from the Amazon-1 also will be included in the Brazilian policy of free access to satellite data, said the head of the Division of Sea, Antarctica and Space of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Fabio Pitaluga was quoted in a statement the National Institute for Space Research (INPE). This policy, which pioneered the world INPE in 2004, was defended by the diplomat on Wednesday during the opening ceremony of the annual meeting of the Group of Earth Observation (GEO, for its acronym in English) in Istanbul (Turkey).

In his speech, the minister highlighted the various initiatives of INPE to share its satellite images with other countries and transferring technology to the neighbors, said the state agency a statement. "Brazil believes in an open data policy libres.Brasil, which adopted this policy for all Earth observation satellites, launched in 2013 the Amazon-1, a satellite that aims to monitor the forest and agriculture in tropical regions of the world, "said Pitaluga in his speech to the members of the GEO, the intergovernmental organization which aims to set up a global system for distribution of satellite data. "Brazil has developed an open source software to process surveillance images remote and analyze geographic information and spatial data. Such software is already widely used in Latin America and we aim to expand its use to other developing nations of Asia and Africa, "the diplomat added.

In addition to providing data from their satellites, the INPE help in the training of technicians from the countries that benefit from free access to the images. The free offer of images began in 2004 with CBERS data (the set of satellites developed, launched and operated jointly by Brazil and China) and it was extended to all other satellites operated by INPE him, including the Amazon-1. "Brazil bets on technology transfer for the monitoring of tropical forests to other developing nations. We are helping other countries to develop their ability to measure and monitor forest carbon stocks, "according Pitaluga. The Amazonia-1 will increase the accuracy of the software developed by Brazil to monitor deforestation of tropical forests by analyzing satellite images. This is because the Brazilian AWFI optical camera (Advanced Wide Field Imager) which is equipped with the ability to operate on the fringes of the visible and the infrared, and will have a resolution of 40 meters and a capacity to take pictures of areas up to 780 kilometers.

The satellite will also feature a camera RALCam-3 developed in England and able to produce images with resolution of 12 meters in areas of 110 km. Pitaluga used his speech to thank the GEO's decision to organize its next annual meeting in the Brazilian city Foz do Iguassu late next year.

SOURCE LaEstrella