CartoDB and DigitalGlobe are partnering to bring satellite data to mapmakers everywhere in order to help them visually explain the events and information shaping the world. The new offering will provide users of all levels with access to the latest satellite content from DigitalGlobe, enabling journalists, publishers, bloggers and web developers to easily incorporate high-resolution imagery into their online content in a matter of minutes.
CartoDB is an open-source mapping and visualization tool that allows anyone to create interactive maps with their own data. The cloud-based solution includes the CartoDB Editor, an online tool that enables anyone to analyze and visualize location data, enabling publishing features and collaboration tools. Those looking to do even more with their data can use the CartoDB Platform, a mapping engine that offers a set of APIs and libraries to help users create maps, manage their data and run geospatial analyses. For examples of maps created using CartoDB, visit the Map Gallery.
“Our collaboration with DigitalGlobe is a significant development for anyone who publishes stories about our world,” said Javier de la Torre, co-founder and CEO of CartoDB. “This partnership will democratize access to high-resolution satellite imagery and data on-demand, incorporating satellite images into interactive stories and content at an affordable price point. The combined power of DigitalGlobe’s extremely current satellite imagery and CartoDB’s easy-to-use platform will enable creative storytellers to communicate and contextualize data with the simple click of a button.”
The platform enables access to high-resolution imagery captured as recently as 24 hours ago, and archive imagery dating back to 2011. A CartoDB Enterprise account is availale.
“Seeing a better world just got easier and faster for journalists, media outlets, and researchers who want to add geospatial context to their online content,” said Josh Winer, sales manager of DigitalGlobe. “With the ease of CartoDB’s mapping tools and platform, customers of any size can quickly and easily integrate high-resolution satellite imagery into their online maps and stories. We’re thrilled to partner with CartoDB and look forward to empowering their community.”
Following Nepal’s devastating magnitude 7.8 earthquake on Saturday, Airbus Defence and Space has acquired Pléiades satellites imagery to support the International Charter and Copernicus Emergency Management Service. The data acquired will assist in assessing the damage and help rescue organizations in the delivery of humanitarian aid.
The before and after Pléiades images over Kathmandu (full image can be downloaded here) show the devastation caused by the earthquake. The below “before” Pléiades image was acquired on Nov. 29, 2014, and the “after” Pléiades image was acquired on April 27, 2015, two days after the earthquake.
Kathmandu, viewed by Pléiades satellites, before and after the earthquake. (Image: Airbus Defence and Space)
The Airbus Pléiades 1A and Pléiades 1B satellites operate as a constellation in the same orbit, phased 180 degrees apart. The identical twin satellites deliver high-resolution optical data products and can revisit any point on the globe, according to Airbus.
UPDATE:
Esri has created a Nepal Earthquake Swipe Map, which allows users to compare the pre- and post-earthquake images from Airbus Defence & Space to explore damage around Nepal. This map includes several bookmarks to help users navigate around key points of interest and landmarks that were damaged or destroyed.
In response to the devastating 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck central Nepal on April 25, DigitalGlobe has made high-resolution satellite imagery of the affected areas freely available online to all groups involved in the response and recovery effort through the company’s FirstLook initiative.
The below before and after images show the destruction of the nine-storey Dharahara Tower, which was built in 1832 and was a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The Dharahara Tower in Kathmandu, in a DigitalGlobe satellite image taken in October 2014. (Image credit: DigitalGlobe)The Dharahara Tower is shown leveled following the earthquake (Image credit: DigitalGlobe).
Specifically, DigitalGlobe activated FirstLook, the subscription service that provides emergency management and humanitarian workers with fast, web-based access to pre- and post-event images of the impacted area. DigitalGlobe captured imagery of the area April 26 through heavy cloud cover with its WorldView-1, and WorldView-3 and GeoEye-1 satellites. WorldView-2 and WorldView-3 have been tasked to image the area again April 28. Pre-event imagery dating back to April 1 is also available to aid understanding and coordination for on-the-ground missions.
In addition, DigitalGlobe has activated Tomnod, the crowdsourcing platform that allows web-connected volunteers around the globe to help disaster response teams by mapping damage from this earthquake. While satellite imagery on its own is useful, greater benefit comes from extracting meaningful information that can be used by first responder and recovery agencies.
By visiting the Tomnod website, users can participate in the Nepal campaign by tagging damaged buildings, roads, and areas of major destruction to inform disaster response teams on the ground. Whether a person donates five minutes or five hours, anyone can analyze DigitalGlobe imagery to help make a difference.
A massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck 77 kilometers (48 miles) northwest of Nepal’s capital Kathmandu at 0611 GMT on April 25, toppling office blocks and towers and killing thousands of people. More than two dozen people were also reported killed in neighboring India, China and Bangladesh.
As of April 27, the Government of Nepal reported 3,351 deaths and 6,833 injured people, according to ReliefWeb. These numbers are expected to increase further as search and rescue teams reach remote areas. Most of the deaths are recorded in Bhaktapur, Kathmandu and Lalitpur. Eight million people in 39 districts have been affected, of which over 2 million people live in the 11 severely affected districts.
The Esri disaster page is featuring news stories, video feeds, and other information about the earthquake in Nepal, on an Earthquake Public Information Map. Users can explore the locations and intensities of the various quakes that struck Nepal, along with a shakemap from the USGS. This map also includes geotagged social media from Twitter and YouTube with local content related to the quakes.
Another Esri map, Mapping the 2015 Nepal Earthquake, provides a closer look at Nepal’s history of seismic activity, and shows how people are impacted by earthquakes. This story map also includes information about relief operations and key points of interest in the region, as well as a 3D web scene of the area affected by the avalanche on Mt. Everest.
OpenStreetMap is also working to help with relief efforts. “Our goal is to contribute to humanitarian relief by rapidly providing a detailed and accurate map (i.e., road network, villages, buildings, etc.) to support the humanitarian organizations. These services help locate people at risk efficiently, and facilitate the delivery of goods and services to remote areas.”
Trimble has expanded its portfolio of geospatial solutions for surveyors, engineers and mapping professionals. Highlights include new total stations, a new GNSS receiver and new field and office software features. The solutions save time, reduce costs, streamline workflows and produce high-quality geospatial deliverables across a wide range of industries, Trimble said.
“Trimble’s portfolio expansion will enable our customers to work in a more efficient, seamless and collaborative manner,” said Chris Gibson, vice president of Trimble. “Trimble’s solutions are best known for quality, dependability and performance. Our vision is to equip customers with the most innovative tools, which includes a focus on offering new software applications that streamline and elevate the value of geospatial data to guide smart decision-making and transform the way organizations work.”
The expanded portfolio of productivity solutions include:
Total Station Solutions
A range of new and enhanced robotic total stations — the Trimble S5, S7 and S9 — improve project efficiencies, productivity and deliverables. Times saving enhancements include improved Trimble VISION technology, SureScan technology included in the S7 and optional in the S9 total station, and the DR Plus electronic distance measurement technology as a standard feature.
Theft and loss risks are also minimized now with Locate2Protect technology embedded in each instrument, allowing users to remotely track the location of their equipment in real-time using Trimble InSphere Equipment Manager.
In the office, Trimble Business Center software can be used to create high-dynamic-range (HDR) images using data captured with total stations. A new total station data editor enables fieldwork to be rapidly reviewed and allows surveyors to create deliverables with confidence, Trimble said.
Scanning Solutions
Trimble continues to blend powerful 3D laser scanning and imaging hardware with workflow-based software to drive new efficiencies for survey applications and construction planning and design.
The Trimble TX8 3D laser scanner now offers greater accuracy (down to 1 mm) and streamlined onboard operation when measuring to longer ranges, decreasing the field time required for capturing reliable high-accuracy data.
Enhanced tools in Trimble RealWorks software version 9.1 further reduce the time to produce high-quality deliverables from Trimble TX8 data. The new version of Trimble RealWorks software includes improved workflows for creating floor settlement plans and 3D pipeline models as well as complete storage tank inspection and reporting capabilities.
GNSS Solutions
The new Trimble R8s Integrated GNSS receiver and updated version of Trimble Access field software combine to offer configurable and scalable settings. Surveyors have the flexibility across their workflows by being able to tailor the Trimble R8s receiver with the updated field software for their specific application. The ability to customize provides flexibility for future business requirements and allows customers to maximize efficiencies across their workflows.
Imaging Solutions
Trimble enhancements to Trimble VISION workflows increase the value of highly accurate image data. Survey, engineering and civil infrastructure professionals can now generate dense point cloud deliverables in Trimble Business Center from images captured using the Trimble V10 Imaging Rover. Users can also quickly generate 2D CAD and 3D real-world models from images captured with Trimble total stations using the streamlined workflows created within Trimble Business Center and SketchUp software.
Availability
Trimble Access field software, Trimble Business Center version 3.50 office software, the Trimble R8s GNSS receiver, Trimble S5, S7 and S9 Total Stations and TX8 3D Scanner are available now through Trimble’s Geospatial Distribution Channel.
Getmapping has partnered with PlanetObserver to offer customers a full range of global and regional Earth satellite imagery along with global height data. The partnership is in line with Getmapping’s wider strategy to extend its reach beyond its established markets in the UK and Africa and signals an intention to provide a global capability in geospatial products and services.
The key PlanetObserver offerings available from Getmapping include PlanetSAT 15, 15-m resolution global satellite imagery and two height data products, PlanetDEM 30 and PlanetDEM 90 with resolutions of 30 m and 90 m respectively.
The satellite imagery is the most up to date satellite dataset currently available and provides natural colour (RGB) imagery free from clouds. Available from a few square kilometers to global coverage, the data is especially suited to a wide range of sectors, including energy and utilities, tele-communications and smartphone apps, visualization and simulation, plus mapping and illustration.
The PlanetDEM height datasets are seamless global digital elevation models at 30m and 90m resolution and are derived from a combination of SRTM (Shuttle Radar Topography Mission v4.1) data corrected with multi-source cartographic data, and are perfect for 3D simulation and visualisation applications, base mapping, energy and geological surveys.
All PlanetObserver data is delivered in a range of standard formats, and is also available via WMS and as an additional layer in the Getmapping Online GIS software.
“We have been providing high-quality aerial imagery and elevation data across the UK and Africa for a number of years and it has always been our intention to provide our customers with a global offering,” said Pete Bonham, Getmapping’s Business Manager. We expect satellite imagery and DEMs to be particularly popular with our Online GIS customers who can subscribe to access the data from within the application. The high quality data from PlanetObserver covers the entire surface of the Earth, and provides excellent base layers for our expanding Online GIS application, it really adds value to our offering.”
Laurent Masselot, CEO of PlanetObserver added, “Our new cooperation with Getmapping is a major step forward to efficiently supply our geospatial data to a large user community. We’re particularly excited to reach out to users of Getmapping online GIS software and have them take advantage of our value-added products.”
GIS Cloud is previewing Maplim, an application that allows for fast, intuitive real-time collaboration on a map using any device. GIS Cloud is offering sign-ups for free, early access to Maplim.
According to GIS Cloud, “The idea is to put a map in the context of an organization board where you created projects and cards while engaging with your colleagues in discussions, making drawings (redlining and annotations), attaching documents, or just leaving comments.
Features:
Organization. Create real-time collaboration streams as cards, to which you can add any content around a map and share it with your colleagues. Maplim adapts to your project, team, and workflow.
Redline and Comment. Seamlessly make drawings on a map, add notes, marks, and comments, and provide your team with everything they need to get things done in real time.
Sharing. Attach and access important media such as photos, videos, PDFs, and Excel and Word documents relevant to a card.
Sync. Maplim stays perfectly in sync across all your devices, wherever you are. Post comments for instant feedback, follow your team’s activity in real time, and share results with anyone, anywhere, and on any device.
GIS Cloud is offering a free webinar on Maplim on April 28.
GIS Research Methods provides a solid introduction to research methods using GIS.
Scientific data that’s spatially analyzed produces highly useful information for academics, scientists and other researchers, helping them answer questions and make well-informed decisions, according to a new book published by Esri.
Authors Sheila Lakshmi Steinberg and Steven J. Steinberg explain how to incorporate spatial thinking and GIS into research design and analysis. The book introduces readers to the value of thinking spatially, GIS basics, research design and ethics, data sampling and collection, volunteered geographic information, spatial analysis with Esri ArcGIS technology, and more. The authors are scientific researchers who have used GIS in their academic work.
“A unique aspect of this book is that we focus specifically on how to integrate GIS into both qualitative and quantitative research,” the Steinberg’s wrote in the book’s foreword. “Our objective in writing this book is to provide a foundation for GIS research methods and, more specifically, to integrate spatial thinking and spatial analysis into a research tool with clear methodological techniques.”
The book, which was written for social and physical science professionals and academics, provides an introduction to research methods using GIS. For example, readers will learn how to develop useful, spatial information-based interviews and surveys for collecting data in the field; select the right tools for spatial analysis; visualize spatial information; and communicate the results of analyses, Esri said.
The book also outlines what to consider — for example, geographic boundaries, the data, and a diverse group of stakeholders—when creating strong place-based policies. “Policy makers who consider space and place will be more likely to generate policy that is effective in the long run because it has a better opportunity to consider the concerns, needs, and perspectives that tie to data, people, and place,” said the Steinberg’s.
Sheila Lakshmi Steinberg is a professor of social sciences at Brandman University, based in Irvine, Calif. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara; her master of science degree from the University of California, Berkeley; and her doctorate from Pennsylvania State University. Her research interests include environmental sociology, culture and GIS.
Steven J. Steinberg is a principal scientist at the Southern California Coastal Water Research Project, a public environmental research agency based in Costa Mesa. He received his Bachelor of Science degree from Kent State University, his Master of Science degree from the University of Michigan and his doctorate from the University of Minnesota.
Fugro has commissioned an additional airborne laser bathymetry system to underpin its position in the development and application of bathymetric LiDAR technology. The combined Fugro LADS Mk 3 and Riegl VQ-820-G systems provide seamless measurements and mapping of nearshore and shallow water environments. The increased capability will enable Fugro to deliver simultaneous topographic and bathymetric surveys in multiple geographical areas.
With high power and frequency, the combined systems achieve superior coverage that minimizes gaps and outperforms lower energy alternatives and single-sensor systems in all conditions, particularly in difficult environments, Fugro said. They are highly adaptable and small enough to be installed in a variety of light aircraft.
With continued operations across the Middle East during 2015, Fugro will also begin a South West Pacific ALB survey campaign following the award of projects in multiple locations to support nautical charting, coastal engineering, scientific assessments, coastal management, benthic habitat mapping and climate change initiatives.
Since 2012, Fugro has operated simultaneous topographic and bathymetric LiDAR systems in France, Japan, New Zealand and the Middle East. Successful results from Japanese coastal areas include returns from the Fugro LADS Mk3 sensor to 50 meters while recent surveys in Saudi Arabia had even more impressive results, with 65-meter depth returns. The deep water returns combined with high-density shallow water and near coastal returns result in a seamless dataset from ridge to deep reef.
ENSCO Inc. will display its unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) solutions in booth 1551 at AUVSI’s Unmanned Systems 2015 show, held May 5-7 in Atlanta.
Used primarily in military operations, ENSCO sees the value of UAS to law enforcement, agriculture, disaster evaluation and other civilian operations. The company is positioned to design, build, certify and support UAS in the National Airspace System based on its experience with the armed forces, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and national security groups merged with its capabilities in avionics software and flight systems, PNT technology and weather forecasting.
ENSCO will demonstrate its Virtual ENvironment Operations Module (VENOM), a solution for training UAS pilots and payload operators. Fully configurable to match any UAS platform, sensor payload and mission, ENSCO says VENOM provides modeling- and simulation-based training capability based on open architecture and commercial technology.
Topcon Positioning Group has added to its line of reflectorless total stations for the construction and mining market. The GPT-3500LNW total station has a measuring distance of 2,000 meters (6,560 ft.). It is designed to measure further than any non-prism instrument in its class. “Incorporating the Topcon advanced time-of-flight pulse technology, the EDM is fast and powerful,” said Ray Kerwin, director of global surveying products. “The Topcon algorithm filters signal noise to provide accurate measurements even on dark and wet surfaces, where other reflectorless technology might fail.”
The Topcon GPS-3500 total station.
Along with its onboard data collector, the GPT-3500 can connect to an external field controller via built-in Bluetooth technology, enabling field to office connectivity with the MAGNET suite of software solutions. The system can also be paired with a prism to allow for a measurement range of up to 3000 meters (9,842 ft.). Additional features include a rugged IP66 rated design, on-board TopField application software and battery life of up to five working hours.
NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey have started work on Landsat 9, an upgraded rebuild of the Landsat 8 spacecraft launched in 2013, to extend the Landsat program’s decades-long observations of Earth’s land cover. (Image Credit: NASA)
News from NASA.
NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) have started work on Landsat 9, planned to launch in 2023, which will extend the Earth-observing program’s record of land images to half a century.
The Landsat program has provided accurate measurements of Earth’s land cover since 1972. With data from Landsat satellites, ecologists have tracked deforestation in South America, water managers have monitored irrigation of farmland in the American West, and researchers have watched the growth of cities worldwide. With the help of the program’s open archive, firefighters have assessed the severity of wildfires and scientists have mapped the retreat of mountain glaciers.
The president’s fiscal year 2016 budget calls for initiation of a Landsat 9 spacecraft as an upgraded rebuild of Landsat 8, as well as development of a low-cost thermal infrared (TIR) free-flying satellite for launch in 2019 to reduce the risk of a data gap in this important measurement. The TIR free flyer will ensure data continuity by flying in formation with Landsat 8. The budget also calls for the exploration of technology and systems innovations to provide more cost effective and advanced capabilities in future land-imaging missions beyond Landsat 9, such as finding ways to miniaturize instruments to be launched on smaller, less expensive satellites.
“Moving out on Landsat 9 is a high priority for NASA and USGS as part of a sustainable land imaging program that will serve the nation into the future as the current Landsat program has done for decades,” said John Grunsfeld, associate administrator for science at NASA Headquarters, Washington. “Continuing the critical observations made by the Landsat satellites is important now and their value will only grow in the future, given the long term environmental changes we are seeing on planet Earth.”
Because an important part of the land imaging program is to provide consistent long-term observations, this mission will largely replicate its predecessor Landsat 8. The mission will carry two instruments, one that captures views of the planet in visible, near infrared and shortwave-infrared light, and another that measures the thermal infrared radiation, or heat, of Earth’s surfaces. These instruments have sensors with moderate resolution and the ability to detect more variation in intensity than the first seven satellites in the Landsat program.
The Landsat 9 mission is a partnership between NASA and the USGS. NASA will build, launch, perform the initial check-out and commissioning of the satellite; USGS will operate Landsat 9 and process, archive, and freely distribute the mission’s data.
“Landsat is a remarkably successful partnership,” said Sarah Ryker, USGS deputy associate director for climate and land use change, Reston, Virginia. “Last year the White House found that GPS, weather satellites, and Landsat are the three most critical types of Earth-orbiting assets for civil applications, because they’re used by many economic sectors and fields of research. Having Landsat 9 in progress, and a long-term commitment to sustainable land imaging, is great for natural resource science and for data-driven industries such as precision agriculture and insurance.”
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., will lead development of the Landsat 9 flight segment. Goddard will also build the Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS), which will be similar to the TIRS that the center built for Landsat 8. The new improved TIRS will have a five-year design lifetime, compared to the three-year design lifetime of the sensor on Landsat 8.
“This is good news for Goddard, and it’s great news for the Landsat community to get the next mission going,” said Del Jenstrom, the Landsat 9 project manager at NASA Goddard. “It will provide data consistent with, or better than, Landsat 8.”
With decades of observations, scientists can tease out subtle changes in ecosystems, the effects of climate change on permafrost, changes in farming technologies, and many other activities that alter the landscape.
“With a launch in 2023, Landsat 9 would propel the program past 50 years of collecting global land cover data,” said Jeffrey Masek, Landsat 9 Project Scientist at Goddard. “That’s the hallmark of Landsat: the longer the satellites view the Earth, the more phenomena you can observe and understand. We see changing areas of irrigated agriculture worldwide, systemic conversion of forest to pasture — activities where either human pressures or natural environmental pressures are causing the shifts in land use over decades.”
“We have recognized for the first time that we’re not just going to do one more, then stop, but that Landsat is actually a long-term monitoring activity, like the weather satellites, that should go on in perpetuity,” Masek said.
NASA uses the vantage point of space to increase our understanding of our home planet, improve lives, and safeguard our future. NASA develops new ways to observe and study Earth’s interconnected natural systems with long-term data records. The agency freely shares this unique knowledge and works with institutions around the world to gain new insights into how our planet is changing.
