PlanetWatchers composite SAR image of agriculture fields
World-renowned remote sensing specialist Professor Dirk Hoekman recently joined PlanetWatchersâ radar team and directs the company’s new SAR initiatives. With global experience stretching across North America, South America, and Asia, he is committed to maximizing the efficacy of research into the physical aspects of remote sensing and microwave remote sensing, and developing effective remote sensing applications in forestry, agriculture, agro-hydrology, and environmental change climate studies.
Dr. Hoekman actively engages with PlanetWatchersâ clients in forestry, sugarcane, energy, and agriculture. âNatural resources managers are now highly dependent on data, analytics, and insights to help make better informed business decisions and address risk effectively,â he observes.
âI look forward to collaborating with the team, leading the new SAR initiatives, and working with our growing client base around the world to deliver meaningful, actionable business intelligence.â
Ariel Smoliar, CEO of PlanetWatchers, adds, âManagers base key decisions on data. Until recently, their ability to gather useful data was constrained by environmental factors such as massive cloud cover and heavy prolonged rains; smoke, gases, and wildfires; poor light conditions for satellite imagery; availability of airborne systems and drones; etc.
âAfter studying the issue extensively, we have developed a new proprietary solution with Artificial Intelligence proven to overcome these challenges.
âData can now be obtained, as needed, without having to wait for optimal visibility. Analytical insights can be implemented right away—to stop a bad situation from getting worse.â
PlanetWatchers has already successfully completed a number of major engagements around the world using its SAR-based Analytics Platform in a variety of vertical industries including forestry, sugarcane, and energy. âNumerous clients received exceptional field intelligence, and implemented it with measurable gains,â says Smoliar.
The SAR Analytics Platform tasks multi-source SAR sources combined with optical imagery and AI-driven analytics to provide the âLast Mile of Analytics, – actionable intelligence critically important to operations, supply chain, risk management, and planning departments at natural resource companies.
The platform identifies a wide array of parameters, such as crop uniformity and environmental damage caused by wildfires, pests, and weather anomalies that directly impact yield, risks, and profitability.