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Physicists at the University of Leicester to map city’s air quality using plane-mounted spectrometer to track pollutant levels


Scientists at the University of Leicester are set to undertake a groundbreaking project to map air quality across the city, which will see flights across the city using planes fitted with pollution detecting technology.

An air quality measuring spectrometer, developed by the Leicester team will be used to produce “heatmap” style images of pollution levels in Leicester as part of the Airborne Air Quality Mapper (AAQM) project.

The device monitors visible light – and measures how much light is lost at specific wavelengths absorbed by NO2. Development of the instrument took place with Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd and was funded by the UK’s Centre for Earth Observation Instrumentation and the Natural Environment Research Council.

Images show how levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) vary around the city – revealing the differences in air quality between green, wooded areas and busy road junctions and areas of industry.

Results

The results could help draw attention to polluted areas – and help inform future environmental planning decisions. The project is being supported by Leicester city council and Defra.

Project leader Dr Roland Leigh, of the Earth Observation Science group, said: “This is the first time in the UK anyone has been able to use airborne devices to map pollution levels across whole cities. This information really helps us understand the sources of pollution within cities, and the human exposure downwind.

“We are hoping to do carry out further flights as part of the Airborne Air Quality Mapper project – and are looking for potential collaborators and customers.”

The researchers hope to carry out further flights with industrial partners Bluesky International Ltd, a UK-based specialist in aerial imaging and remote sensing data collection and processing. They also hope to be able to adapt the technology to use on spacecraft to monitor pollution levels across the globe.

Dr James Lawrence, Research Associate in the Earth Observation Science Group, developed aspects of the AAQM instrument and flew with it during its test flight.

He said: “We have a world-first spectrometer which shows where the major emissions of nitrogen dioxide are occurring – typically in industrial or heavy traffic areas.

“It is important to note that the measurements do not necessarily relate to the pollution levels at ground level only – each reading takes into account the amount of NO2 at all altitudes between the ground and the plane.”

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(26 June 2013) The biomass of the northern hemisphere’s forests has been mapped with greater precision than ever before thanks to satellites, improving our understanding of the carbon cycle and our prediction of Earth’s future climate.

Accurately measuring forest biomass and how it varies are key elements for taking stock of forests and vegetation. Since forests assist in removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, mapping forest biomass is also important for understanding the global carbon cycle.

In particular, northern forests – including forest soil – store a third more carbon stocks per hectare as tropical forests, making them one of the most significant carbon stores in the world.

The boreal forest ecosystem – exclusive to the northern hemisphere – spans Russia, northern Europe, Canada and Alaska, with interrelated habitats of forests, lakes, wetlands, rivers and tundra.

With processing software drawing in stacks of radar images from ESA’s Envisat satellite, scientists have created a map of the whole northern hemisphere’s forest biomass in higher resolution than ever before – each pixel represents 1 km on the ground.

“Single Envisat radar images taken at a wavelength of approximately 5 cm cannot provide the sensitivity needed to map the composition of forests with high density,” said Maurizio Santoro from Gamma Remote Sensing.

“Combining a large number of radar datasets, however, yields a greater sensitivity and gives a more accurate information on what’s below the forest canopy.”

About 70 000 Envisat radar images from October 2009 to February 2011 were fed into this new, ‘hyper-temporal’ approach to create the pan-boreal map for 2010.

This is the first radar-derived output on biomass for the whole northern zone using a single approach – and it is just one of the products from the Biomasar-II project.

Sponsored by ESA, the project also exploited Envisat archives to generate regional maps for 2005.

The future Sentinel-1 mission will ensure the continuity of this kind of radar data at large, but the dedicated Biomass satellite was recently selected to become ESA’s seventh Earth Explorer mission. The mission is set to provide an easier and more accurate way to monitor this precious resource regularly.

The Biomass satellite will complement the Biomasar results, especially for tropical regions.

“Even our new, hyper-temporal approach is not able to penetrate dense multistorey canopies of rainforests with Sentinel-1 or Envisat’s radars. Here, longer wavelengths are indeed needed,” says Prof. Christiane Schmullius from the University Jena, Biomasar coordinator.

The Biomass satellite will deliver, for the first time from space, radar measurements at a wavelength of around 70 cm to delve below the treetops. It will also monitor forest disturbance and regrowth.

(source: ESA)

28 June 2013) MDA’s Information Systems group is making available a series of Radarsat-2 flood maps to any local, provincial, or federal agency or non-profit organization that is involved in responding to the recent flooding in Alberta.


David Belton, the General Manager for MDA’s Geospatial Services business spoke about this major event. “The flood events in and around southern Alberta were declared the largest in the province’s history. It has caused immense devastation to Calgary, High River and the surrounding region and has delivered untold damage to the people that live there. Belton further added, “When the flooding started, the Canadian Government initiated a number of Radarsat-2 acquisitions of the surrounding region. This new imagery allows us to match the acquisitions of the flooding with imagery from our extensive archive to build a series of flood maps that can help the groups that are responding to this disaster.”

Radarsat-2 is a high resolution Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite that is ideally suited to developing flood products that clearly delineate the extent of flood waters by comparing images from before the flooding took place, with images from the height of the flooding to give organizations responsible for responding to the event details about the flood extents. Covering large areas at a high resolution, Radarsat-2 based flood maps are ideal for assisting in situations like the Alberta floods. The flood products cover an area from Calgary through to High River, and clearly show the extent of the flood. They are available as both PDF reports that provide detailed information about the flooding, as well as geospatial data that can be used for more comprehensive analysis within a Geographic Information System (GIS).

(source: MDA)

Each year, the formation and break up of river-ice around the world can cause extensive damage due to flooding. In the town of Badger, situated in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada, in 2003, the ice-built up to such an extent that severe flooding caused many millions $ damage to homes and property. Since then, the use of satellite radar imagery (Radarsat 1& 2, Envisat and in future Sentinel 1) has led to improved monitoring of the ice build-up and consequently flood warnings are improved allowing citizens to move and protect their property. The success in Badger has led to this technique being used for other rivers in Canada, USA and in Russia.

Furthermore, the products developed to support the improved flood warnings are now also used by emergency services for planning of responses, by the operators of hydro-electric projects to improve resource management and by engineers for design work.

As a further benefit, the sustained observations are available to look at longer term effects and particularly the impact of climate change as well as being available for research and development into flood relief and other local planning schemes.

The Water Resources Management Division of the Newfoundland and Labrador Department of the Environment and Conservation is the provincial authority responsible for providing flood warnings based on the information derived from the satellite data and their model. They also make the ice products available for use by others.


Project Background
The “Badger flood” in 2003 caused $10m of direct damage to the town of Badger; a community of 1,100 inhabitants. It is situated in the centre of Newfoundland island at the confluence of 3 rivers of which the largest is the Exploits river. On 14th February 2003, no flood was indicated by the historically observed, ice behavior, yet on 15th February the river level rose 2.3m in 1 hour and large chunks of ice were pushed into the town. The damage caused was extensive and led to parts of the town being moved and re-constructed. As a result, ways were looked for with which to improve the forecasting of floods without causing extensive false alarms. The Water Resources Management Division had been using an ice-progression model to predict when the river would freeze and when jams would occur (often because of frazil ice slush being carried downstream). The general inaccessibility of the river banks and the large areas to be surveyed meant that a remote sensing system is needed; and the Water Resources Management Division turned to satellites to help.
Issues & Needs
Flood forecasting for rivers like the Exploits at Badger has especially been a challenge due to the complexities of modelling ice formation and breakup in real time in an operational context. This has been further complicated by the effect of climate change which has changed historically observed and studied ice cover formation behavior.
The enclosed nature of the river system (inaccessible river banks) and the large areas to be covered means that using synoptic imagery from radar satellites allows defficiencies in the model to be overcome as well as providing robust improvements as the underlying conditions change due to climatic effects. The area needs to be observed every few days during the winter meaning that satellites provide an effective solution. The use of helicopters or manned observations would be an expensive solution that would be restricted by weather conditions and daytime hours. radar satellites provide all weather coverage at all hours of the day.
The Water Resources Management Division therefore worked with the local EO services company C-Core to develop a solution based on the use of Radarsat imagery which was provided by the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency. This was supported under a project, Polarview from the European Space Agency as part of a programme to prepare service elements for GMES (now Copernicus).
Solution

The river ice service uses satellite RADAR imagery from the ENVISAT, RADARSAT and RADARSAT 2 polar orbiting satellites. It is used to augment and enhance a modelling and traditionally ground observation based flood forecasting service for Badger that uses a computer simulation model for simulating ice conditions on the Exploits River next to Badger. This was the first integration of RADAR imagery into operational flood forecasting of river ice in the world. The river ice service is now used on several rivers in Canada, United States of America and Russia.

The satellite data is acquired and rapidly delivered to the processing centre where it is analysed and interpreted to generate 3 products; the location of the ice front, an ice classification map and an ice change map. These products are delivered to the Water Resources Management Division which has set up an ice monitoring service. This service delivers flood warnings as well as making information available to other users in the area. The first 2 of these products are also made available through a web-site where local citizens are able to see and interpret the information for themselves.

The three products generated are:

1. An Ice front map showing the location of the ice front on the river.

2. An Ice Classification showing the types of ice at various river locations:

3. An Ice change map

These products are used as inputs to the ice model providing information which would otherwise not be available.

Results & Perspectives
The result has been very successful in the Badger area such that it has now been extended into other rivers as well.
Firstly, the improved warnings are allowing citizens of the town to better prepare themselves against the future floods by moving vehicles onto higher ground and moving furniture and other property / valuables into safer locations.
Secondly the direct savings to the Water Resources Management Division is significant with the use of satellite data replacing helicopter flights and the need to send people to gather the information. The cost and the frequent updates required rendered this method almost impossible in any case. Each helicopter flight costs around $5k and with around 35 flights (one flight for each image) needed each year the total cost would be over $100k.

Thirdly, the value gained by the community in having access to better information.

Fourthly, the emergency services which are placed on stand-by as soon as a warning is given are able to operate more efficiently with fewer false alarms and better targeted information when it is needed.

Fifthly, the operators of a hydro-electric dam upstream on the Exploit river are able to use the same products to achieve better management of water levels in the winter since they are able to observe the ice-build-up more directly and frequently; using the information to provide real-time feedback.

Sixthly, the engineers designing a new hydro-electric project on the Churchill River in Labrador are able to take advantage of the ice information directly during the design process as well as planning for it once the project becomes operational.

Overall the economic value of the application is significant and the use in a number of other rivers in Canada, USA and Russia provide even more economic value to this application.

Related & Info

The launch by the European Space Agency (ESA) of its Proba-V earth observation mini-satellite in the coming weeks will represent the first time that a European-made device based on gallium nitride (GaN) will be sent into space. This follows an intensive test series that has qualified the amplifier – developed by the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics IAF in Freiburg, Germany – for launch into space.

The satellite weighs about 140kg and is just about the size of a washing machine. The mini-satellite Proba-V is covered in solar cells and will be observing the vegetation on earth. Every other day, the environmental satellite will send pictures from a distance of about 820km. Rain forest destruction, pollution of the seas and soil erosion will be made visible by pictures taken in various spectral ranges.

Being more robust, more compact and lighter than traditional solutions, the new GaN technology promises to significantly improve communication electronics in space. “We expect signal strength and data transmission to improve five- or tenfold,” says Andrew Barnes, who is responsible for the project at ESA. Based on GaN high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs), the amplifier circuit operates in the 8–8.5GHz (X-band) frequency range for Proba-V’s communication system. Tesat-Spacecom GmbH of Backnang, Germany, in cooperation with SCHOTT Electronic Packaging, packaged the amplifier together with further components into a hermetically sealed housing suitable for operation in space. “We are eagerly awaiting the results of the first practical test in space,” says Barnes.

More information at

Eurisy event: This event will offer a platform for SMEs to showcase their innovative uses of satellite applications in sectors such as transport, marketing, construction, agriculture, tourism, and others.

Emphasis will be placed on the value for money of the applications from an end-user point of view, and on how using such applications has helped SMEs boost their competitiveness.

Representatives of European and national institutions will talk about the importance of boosting SME innovation, and introduce support mechanisms enabling SMEs to take up innovative satellite applications.

Programme

Registration

MDA’s Information Systems group (MDA) announced that its Geospatial business unit will deliver RADARSAT-2 data products and change monitoring services to the Ukraine Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Ministry) to support environmental monitoring and emergency response services in key areas within the Ukraine.

Working with G.X. Satellite Communication Management Limited (GX COM), a local industry partner that provides environmental monitoring and emergency response solutions, MDA’s remote sensing data and services will enhance these capabilities and provide actionable information to enable the Ministry to monitor changes to sensitive environmental areas, manage on-going changes, mitigate negative environmental impacts, and to respond effectively when environmental emergencies occur.

MDA’s change monitoring service, derived from RADARSAT-2 imagery, can be used to detect deforestation, monitor mining activities, identify new infrastructure development in urban or suburban regions; determine flooding extent, and detect oil spills on water.

The RADARSAT-2 satellite has global high-resolution surveillance capabilities that include a large collection capacity and high accuracy. The satellite acquires data regardless of light or weather conditions, provides frequent re-visit imaging options, and is supported by ground receiving stations that provide near real-time information delivery services. This versatility makes RADARSAT-2 a reliable source of information in multi-faceted intelligence, surveying, and monitoring programs. The unique high resolution wide swath beam modes available from RADARSAT-2 make it the ideal satellite for monitoring changes across vast areas.

Internet: www.mdacorporation.com

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(March) MDA’s Information Systems group announced that it has signed a contract to provide the Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI) with RADARSAT-1 and RADARSAT-2 data to create up-to-date ice charts and reports that are sent via satellite to ships navigating the ice-infested Greenland Sea.

Early in the RADARSAT program, DMI partnered with MDA to pioneer the use of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data for ice monitoring. DMI was one of the first operational users to choose RADARSAT because of its ice-specific benefits and MDA’s operational focus. MDA has been supplying DMI with RADARSAT-1 images since 1998 and RADARSAT-2 images since 2008. The capabilities provided by RADARSAT enable DMI to produce the timely and reliable information required for demanding ice monitoring operations.

RADARSAT provides the best available ice discrimination and feature classification performance, and is the sensor of choice to support high-latitude maritime navigation and operations. RADARSAT-2 delivers multi-polarization imaging options that dramatically improve ice-edge detection, ice-type discrimination, and ice topography and structure information. With scenes 500 km wide, the swath widths offered by RADARSAT’s ScanSAR modes make it the ideal sensor for broad area ice monitoring.

Internet: www.mdacorporation.com

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UNIGIS selected Intergraph’s geospatial education offerings to provide leading GIS, remote sensing and photogrammetry tools to its universities and enrolled students. UNIGIS, a network of universities cooperating in the design and delivery of distance learning in GIS, was founded in 1990 and currently includes sites in fourteen countries.

Members of the UNIGIS network offer postgraduate masters, certificate and diploma courses in Geographical Information Systems by open and distance learning. Core course resources are adapted, translated and supplemented with additional materials to support the needs of local students. Members of the UNIGIS network also work together in research and curriculum development activities related to geospatial education.

Under the agreement, Intergraph will provide 100 licenses of the following software to the UNIGIS network:

  • GeoMedia Professional version 6.1
  • IMAGINE Professional 2013
  • GeoMedia Grid version 6.1
  • GeoMedia 3D version 6.1
  • LPS 2013

Internet: www.intergraph.com

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The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) announced a call for public comment on the OGC Web Coverage Service (WCS) Coordinate Reference System (CRS) Extension Standard.

WCS defines an open standard interface to easily access multi-dimensional, spatio-temporal coverages, such as sensor data, satellite imagery, image time series, simulation data, point clouds, and meshes.

The OGC WCS CRS Extension defines an extension to the WCS Core that enables requests to specify that coverages be returned in one of a number of different Coordinate Reference Systems. While the WCS Core defines access only in the coverage’s Native CRS (i.e., the one in which the coverage is stored on the server), the WCS CRS Extension defines how to request and obtain a coverage in a CRS different from the Native CRS. This flexibility is important, for example, in exchanging data between different environments.

The OGC WCS Standards Working Group will consider all comments when preparing a final draft of the candidate standard. The comment period ends 5 May 2013.

Internet: www.opengeospatial.org/standards/requests/100

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