Communications of the ACM
Keeping a Watch on the World
Credit: INSTAAR
University of Nottingham researchers are leading an effort to monitor the Earth's landscape and the elemental forces that mold it. The Earth Observation Technology Cluster (EOTC) will focus on technology that can be used for a spectrum of scientific applications, including measuring volcanic gas emissions, three dimensional (3-D) mapping of natural and urban environments, and monitoring the impact of climate change on Polar sea ice. The network will unite academics, industrial partners, and public research entities to promote state-of-the-art technologies.
The EOTC will focus on five main themes, including low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle observation used for monitoring crops, coastal algal blooms, and vegetation, in addition to photogrammetry and laser scanning to construct 3-D computer models of landscapes and geology. The Terrestrial LIDAR Knowledge Exchange Network will be used for environmental monitoring and modeling in different environments, while field-based Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy can monitor volcanic gas emissions and identify polluted land. Hyper-temporal earth observation can monitor the effect of global climate change by looking at the change in plant life growth.
Finally, circumpolar and cryospheric earth observation will study the potential effect of climate change on melting glaciers and can predict ice avalanches and other natural dangers.
From University of Nottingham
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