91快色

The Earth is large and always changing. Throughout history we鈥檝e used maps to visualize our planet, and everyone has used Google Maps to get from Point A to B. 

Researchers at the 91快色 are raising the bar even further than Google, developing a software system that can do more than just visualize the planet鈥檚 surface 鈥� it can also understand what鈥檚 going on beneath our feet and above the sky. 

Dr. Faramarz Samavati, PhD, a professor in the Department of Computer Science, and PhD candidate Lakin Wecker, have been involved in the development of a 3D to help better store and utilize the plethora of data retrieved by geospatial sensors. 

鈥淒igital Earth System is a digital representation of the Earth,鈥� says Samavati. 鈥淪o, you can imagine it鈥檚 some kind of virtual globe. We can see the globe in 3D environments, but it can also store the vast amounts of geospatial data related to the Earth and make it easy to utilize.  

鈥淧eople have been using simple flat maps as their geographical information systems for many years. It was an interesting challenge to go beyond that.鈥�

Although geospatial sensors such as satellites and drones help collect the data that goes toward advancing how we visualize the Earth, Samavati says conventional geographical systems are still unable to fully utilize this data to make informed and timely decisions regarding our planet and many location-based applications.  

For example, data collected by satellites can be used to monitor and measure risks and predict wildfire behaviour; it can also do this for other natural disasters. This is why Samavati is determined to contribute to the advancement of the Digital Earth System, as it can assist these existing systems, leading to better decision-making related to the planet. It鈥檒l allow for more accurate and timely predictions of when natural disasters could occur. 

鈥淲ith the help of this advanced system, we aim to answer the question: What鈥檚 happening beyond the Earth's surface, from underground to the atmosphere?鈥� says Samavati.

Both researchers play large roles at , a company focused on innovation, using technologies to address geospatial questions, and making sure their stakeholders can understand geospatial data to make well-informed global decisions. As lead scientist and chief technology officer, respectively, Samavati and Wecker believe that much of what they do as researchers in computer science relates to geospatial data.

鈥淲e鈥檙e talking about how to deal with information that鈥檚 on the Earth, we鈥檙e dealing with how things are related to each other,鈥� says Wecker, BSc鈥�04, MSc鈥�07. 鈥淎nd it turns out the mathematics from computer graphics are very valuable when dealing with geospatial data.鈥�

Samavati says he鈥檚 really felt the support from U91快色 鈥� and the Faculty of Science specifically 鈥� throughout the research, innovation and technology-transfer process. 

鈥淎s a researcher, we always need funding and access to talent, and the university has been great in that regard,鈥� says Samavati. 

Adds Wecker: 鈥淚t's an area filled with opportunity for innovation.鈥�  

Constantly dealing with imperfect data related to the Digital Earth System has made both researchers realize the importance of making the data accessible and easier to follow. By further understanding the Earth, more-informed decisions can be made related to it.

鈥淭here鈥檚 so much data that has associated geospatial information that our work impacts pretty much every industry,鈥� says Wecker. 鈥淲e have stakeholders and decision-makers and the public themselves who want to make decisions 鈥� but, if they can鈥檛 see the data, they don鈥檛 even know what they have.

鈥淎t BigGeo, we鈥檙e looking at more efficient ways to be able to visualize vast amounts of geospatial data.鈥�