Events for March 8, 2018 - February 25, 2019
March 2018
Balancing Urban Growth and Ecological Conservation: A Geographical Perspective
The location, rate, and magnitude of urban expansion will affect wide-ranging phenomena including ecosystems and biodiversity. A global analysis of urban extent circa 2000 and urban expansion forecasts out to 2030 indicates that the amount of urban land within 50 km of the world’s protected areas will triple by 2030.
Read MoreRe-Framing I: Correcting the Scaling of Spatial Autocorrelation and a New Method to Tackle Big Data
Dr. Thomas J. DeWitt Department of Wildlife & Fisheries Associate Professor Moran’s I is an iconic measure of spatial autocorrelation. It is elegant for its intended basic and intuitive nature, ofen idealized beyond its actual character. Several authors have noticed problems of bias, distribution assumption violations, and scale exception snafus with the original statistic. Still, I is generally treated as its Platonic ideal. Ideally, I ranges with a bell‐curve form…
Read MoreEyes in the Heavens: Satellite Technologies for Remote Site Characterization
This presentation is based on the article ‘Eyes in the Heavens’ (Geostrata, 2017) with a very special theme: “Geotechnics at remote sites”. Installation and maintenance of instrumentation to monitor geotechnical projects in remote locations is usually more challenging than sites in urban areas. In this presentation, Dr. Zhangwei Ning will introduce the roles and applications of three different satellites for remote site monitoring with case studies. These are: telecommunication satellite…
Read MoreApril 2018
Insight Into the Physical Signatures of Marsh Erosion
Salt marshes along the Galveston Bay coast experience a high degree of edge erosion caused by wave impact. The goal of this study was to determine the minimum wave height contributing to marsh erosion.
Read MoreTactical Airborne Oil Spill Remote Sensing: POSEIDON, a New Operational Approach
An overview of currently existing oil spill remote sensing technology such as infrared/ultraviolet line scanners, microwave radiometers, laser fluorosensors and radar systems; and a focus on the operational approach adopted during oil spill detection, that includes three basic steps: synoptic overview of the spill, near range analysis, data processing and data communication.
Read MoreOctober 2018
Autonomous Vehicles and Multi-Platform Coastal Ocean Observatory During Hurricane Harvey (2017)
Dr. Steven F. DiMarco Professor & Ocean Observing Team Lead Dept. of Oceanography, Texas A&M University Hurricane Harvey made landfall near Rockport Texas as a Category 4 storm on 25 August 2017. The ocean observing network in the western Gulf of Mexico, comprised of the Texas Automated Buoy System (TABS), autonomous ocean vehicles, and shipboard observations reported oceanographic conditions throughout the summer of 2017. These include pre-storm conditions, direct storm…
Read MoreHurricane Evacuation Studies: Texas Lower Rio Grande Valley and Coastal Bend Studies
Alex Abuabara PhD Student, Urban Planning Texas A&M University This presentation will briefly show how the demarcation of new hurricane evacuation zones on the Texas coast are developed. In order to minimize the populational exposure to the risk presented by hurricanes, both physical and social vulnerability are considered. In a basic approach, evacuation zones are derived from expected surge inundation due to hurricanes. However, many nuances have to be considered…
Read MoreNovember 2018
Coastal Wave, Surge, and Sediment Transport Predictions over Galveston Bay: Application to Environmental Health
Dr. James Kaihatu Professor & Associate Department Head for Research Zachry Department of Civil Engineering Texas A&M University Abstract: A recently-established Superfund research center at Texas A&M University School of Veterinary Medicine is centered on the toxicological and environmental effects of contaminated sediment movement and deposition in the vicinity of Galveston Bay and the Houston Ship Channel. In such a scenario, sediment from capped sites in Galveston Bay would…
Read MorePhytoplankton Productivity in Bays along the Gulf and its Linkage to River Discharge
Dr. Huilin Gao Associate Professor Zachry Department of Civil Engineering Texas A&M University Abstract: To better manage coastal ecosystems, long term historical records and seasonal predictions of Chlorophyll-a concentrations (an indicator of phytoplankton productivity) are both important. Meanwhile, river discharge, which is influenced by climate change, urbanization, and flow regulation, can affect phytoplankton productivity. First, we demonstrate the capability of using satellite remote sensing to generate long term, spatially distributed records…
Read MoreFebruary 2019
TAMU Interactive Charrette: Leveraging Geospatial Digital Transformation
Dr. Stacey D. Lyle Assistant Professor of Practice Department of Geography, Texas A&M University Charrette brainstorming on using Geospatial Technology to Solve Scientific Challenges. “Digital Transformation the new industry currency”: The economic reality where technology disrupts workflows to actionable intelligent solutions. Team science is a collaborative effort to address a scientific challenge that leverages the strengths and expertise of professionals trained in different fields. Geospatial Technologies: UAS/Drones, Geiger Lidar, eCognition,…
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