International Geospatial Digest for August 19, 2024

1. UZMA signed agreements with government authorities and organizations to enhance Malaysian geospatial services.
2. UniSQ use geospatial data to help better agricultural planning in Vietnam.
3. Details maps and forecasts for tropical storm Ernesto.
4. 1^st vegetation map of Antarctica shows environmental change across the continent.
5. Sealions are scientists’ new friends for seafloor mapping.
6. British government is mapping underground utilities.

UZMA signed agreements with government authorities and organizations to enhance Malaysian geospatial services.

Uzma, an energy and technology company from Malaysia, has signed agreements with the Malaysia Space Agency and other Malaysian tech companies to develop and launch an advanced Earth Observation satellite this year. The space agency will lead research activities to enhance AI and remote sensing for soil health monitoring, boarder security, precision agriculture, and support ESG measures for carbon accounting. Moreover, high-temporal (up to 7 revisits per day) and high-resolution (70cm multispectral) data will be available for commercial purposes. Uzma claims that the satellite data will be more affordable to achieve efficient and economical monitoring practices. Follow the link to read the whole story

UniSQ use geospatial data to help better agricultural planning in Vietnam

The Australian government has approved a federal funding for a new program to The University of Southern Queensland. It aims to develop technological solutions which supports Vietnam’s sustainable agricultural practices, for instance to improve crop monitoring quality and create a cloud-based information hub for smallholder farmers and local government sectors. A new internet mapping tool will be developed to improve data accessibility and enhance detail of information, which allows farmers to make well-informed information. AI algorithms will be used to analyze field data, drone and space-borne sensing data in order to deliver precise crop monitoring result for better decision making. Read the full article here.

Details maps and forecasts for tropical storm Ernesto

Hurricane Ernesto is a Category 1 storm now. It is the fifth named tropical storm this year. It caused power outage to about 750,000 homes when it passed through Puerto Rico. Bermuda is expected to have flash flooding and storm surge where Ernesto is getting closer to the island. Although the forecast shows that it will not make a landfall to U.S. mainland, the hurricane center has warned people to stay away from coastal areas as surf and rip currents may still occur. Check this link for the latest update.

1^st vegetation map of Antarctica shows environmental change across the continent.

More than 100 plant species can be found at Antarctica today. All the vegetation is found at 0.12% of its total ice-free area, including the Antarctic Peninsula and the neighboring offshore islands. Scientists have created a 10m resolution map of photosynthetic life by using high resolution images captured by Sentinel-2. The vegetation map provides an updated tool for future conservation planning and biogeographic assessments. The vegetation distribution patterns allow scientists to understand how climate change affects the Antarctic environment. See the full article here.

Sealions are scientists’ new friends for seafloor mapping.

About 26% of the seabed has been mapped today. Remote sea floor is hard to be surveyed because traditional surveying methods are time consuming and costly. Scientists are now trying a new approach with the help of Australian sea lions. GPS sensors, camera and motion sensors are mounted on sea lions without hindering them of affecting their behavior. The footage was used for biodiversity assessment. These data can also be used to predict seafloor habitat distribution in other unknown areas. The observation results can help scientists to have better conservation decisions.

Britain government is mapping underground cables and pipes

There are missing records about precise locations of some underground cables and pipes in Britain. When diggers accidentally damaged the utility infrastructure, power outage or gas leakage is very likely to happen, causing economic loss or injuries. Ordnance Survey, the government mapping department of the UK, created a National Underground Asset Register. This project aims to create a digital web map which shows the location of underground utilities including those which were built by private sectors. Utility builders can plan new assets with less effort if they know the location of existing cables and pipes. Legal concerns about data privacy and right of access to those data are two major challenges that have to be solved by the British government. Read the full article here.