News

UH GSES Student Wins at Lidar Leader Awards February 1, 2019 Geosensing Systems Engineering & Sciences student, Andrea Albright, won an Outstanding University Achievement in Lidar award for the most innovative use of lidar at this year's...	Geosensing Systems Engineering & Sciences student, Andrea Albright, won an Outstanding University Achievement in Lidar award for the most innovative use of lidar at this year's International LiDAR Mapping Forum in Denver. She won the award with her presentation on measuring breaking waves with lidar technology, using Velodyne lasers. Congratulations, Andrea! Read about the second annual Lidar Leader Awards here.
2018 Student Seed Proposal Submission Period Extended December 17, 2018 The due date for 2018 Seed Project proposals has been extended until Friday, February 1, 2019. Due to research community requests, students will be provided additional time to apply for a...	The due date for 2018 Seed Project proposals has been extended until Friday, February 1, 2019. Due to research community requests, students will be provided additional time to apply for a seed project grant. This will allow for more and better submissions from graduate students. See the program announcement below: The National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping invites proposals from graduate students seeking airborne lidar data (up to 40 km2) for use in research toward an M.S. or Ph.D. degree. For background information and a complete guideline for submitting a proposal, see the Seed Proposals and Format Guidelines pages. The proposal submission period is Thursday, September 13, 2018–Friday, February 1, 2019. For more information, contact ncalm [at] egr.uh.edu (subject: Seed%20Proposal%20Inquiry) or call (832) 842-8881.
Ekhtari Defends Ph.D. Dissertation November 27, 2018 Ph.D. candidate Nima Ekhtari defended his dissertation titled, "Land Cover and Impervious Surface Mapping Using Multispectral Airborne Laser Scanner Data." High-resolution, multispectral (...	Ph.D. candidate Nima Ekhtari defended his dissertation titled, "Land Cover and Impervious Surface Mapping Using Multispectral Airborne Laser Scanner Data." High-resolution, multispectral (multiwavelength) laser scanner data were used to classify land cover, using machine learning, into diverse classes for impervious surface mapping and urban change studies. The dissertation proposes two methods to mitigate the influence of multi-echo effect on the spectral information of ALS returns. Hybrid intensity correction schemes were also devised and tested to improve classification accuracy. The final impervious surface map showed that the approach had higher accuracies compared to a similar map created from a hyperspectral passive imager, demonstrating the advantage of multispectral ALS data for automated, high-accuracy, high-resolution impervious surface mapping. Nima’s Geosensing Systems Engineering & Sciences (GSES) advisor was Dr. Craig Glennie. He is currently working at CobbFendley & Associates as a GIS Analyst. Congratulations, Nima!
Beloved Friend and Colleague Passes Away November 6, 2018 Faculty, staff, and students at University of Houston’s National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping are deeply saddened by the passing of our friend and colleague Laura Ann Murphy. Laura was...	Faculty, staff, and students at University of Houston’s National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping are deeply saddened by the passing of our friend and colleague Laura Ann Murphy. Laura was not only essential to our day-to-day research and teaching efforts, but she went above and beyond to ensure that we were happy and doing well. From a simple M&M dispenser that she kept at her desk so we had a sweet moment when we stopped to talk to her, to her famous pineapple upside-down cake and Irish beef and Guinness stew that she often prepared for our pot-lucks or celebrations, to the many lunches, dinners, and outings she organized for staff, students, and visitors, to the unforgettable moments she delighted and entertained us through singing, she has left us with countless memories. Laura was not only special and caring to the people she knew, but she was kind and helpful to those in need that she did not know. When Hurricane Harvey hit Houston last year, she was one of the first people to organize food, clothing, and supplies collection and delivery for her immediate and city-wide neighbors. We have lost not only a coworker, but we have lost an important part of our collective spirit. We are certain that she would like us to keep moving forward, to continue to do good for science and our communities, and to put a smile on our friends’, families’, and neighbors’ faces. As we miss her, we also celebrate her life, her accomplishments, and the joy and positive examples she brought to our lives. Below we share photos of a few of these special moments with which she enriched our lives.
Beyond Archaeology: NCALM Pursues New Technology, New Projects September 20, 2018 Lidar Mapping Has Also Yielded Other Earth Science Discoveries The National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping is best-known for its headline-grabbing work in archeology – the 2016...	Lidar Mapping Has Also Yielded Other Earth Science Discoveries The National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping is best-known for its headline-grabbing work in archeology – the 2016 discovery of previously unknown ruins of a complex Maya settlement in the Guatemalan jungles, undocumented settlements from an ancient civilization in Honduras uncovered in 2012, and detailed mapping of more than a dozen other settlements in Mexico and Central America.
NCALM Invites Seed Project Proposals from Graduate Students September 12, 2018 The National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping invites proposals from graduate students seeking airborne lidar data (up to 40 km2) for use in research toward an M.S. or Ph.D. degree. For...	The National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping invites proposals from graduate students seeking airborne lidar data (up to 40 km2) for use in research toward an M.S. or Ph.D. degree. For background information and a complete guideline for submitting a proposal, see the Seed Proposals and Format Guidelines pages. The proposal submission period is Thursday, September 13–Thursday, December 20, 2018. For more information, contact ncalm [at] egr.uh.edu (subject: Seed%20Project%20Proposal%20Information) or call (832) 842-8881.
Three New NCALM Datasets Released by OpenTopography September 6, 2018 Three new datasets have been released by OpenTopography. The data were collected using an Optech Titan multispectral lidar and cover more than 270 km2. The projects' PIs were student seed...	Three new datasets have been released by OpenTopography. The data were collected using an Optech Titan multispectral lidar and cover more than 270 km2. The projects' PIs were student seed proposal winners. Read more at opentopography.org.
UH Student Earns Top National Defense Science and Engineering Fellowship August 17, 2018 Research Soaring to New Heights on the Tails of NASA Satellites Andrea Albright, a graduate student in the Cullen College of Engineering’s geosensing systems engineering and sciences...	Research Soaring to New Heights on the Tails of NASA Satellites Andrea Albright, a graduate student in the Cullen College of Engineering’s geosensing systems engineering and sciences program, won a 2018 National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) Fellowship. She is among 69 U.S. fellows chosen from more than 3,600 applicants.
Mission: Possible — Mapping Dangerous Terrain August 8, 2018 UH Engineers Focus on Degradable Reconnaissance Vehicles and Evasive Drone Maneuvers Ensuring military forces have up-to-date information about a potentially hostile region offers...	UH Engineers Focus on Degradable Reconnaissance Vehicles and Evasive Drone Maneuvers Ensuring military forces have up-to-date information about a potentially hostile region offers obvious advantages, but current methods for doing that – especially along shorelines, where underwater mines and other hazards can pose serious risks – all have drawbacks. It is especially difficult if keeping the technology out of enemy hands is a priority.
NCALM Announces 2019 Mexico and Central America Airborne Lidar Collection Campaign August 1, 2018 Mexico and Central America Airborne Lidar Collection Campaign for Small- and Medium-Sized Projects The National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping (NCALM) is announcing a call for...	Mexico and Central America Airborne Lidar Collection Campaign for Small- and Medium-Sized Projects The National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping (NCALM) is announcing a call for expressions of interest from researchers with small- to medium-sized projects and budgets in Mexico and Central America for Spring 2019 (March–May), including but not limited to archaeology, geology, and ecology. In the past two years, NCALM has received several inquiries from individual researchers with small projects in Mexico and Central America. The size of these projects, and their associated budgets, make them economically and practically unfeasible if considered individually. However, if several small projects within a given country or region are grouped together, in such a way that the mobilization costs can be proportionately distributed among the multiple projects, we believe it is possible to survey the small projects and bring large benefits to the broader community. Currently, NCALM has received expressions of interest for small areas in central and south Belize, the Campeche/Tabasco/Chiapas, Mexico, border with Peten, Guatemala, near San Salvador, El Salvador, and the Caribbean coast of Honduras. We are looking for additional projects to complement these sites. The smallest individual project budget that NCALM will consider is $10,000 (USD), which can potentially yield data collections of 10 km2, depending on collection density, distance to airports, and other neighboring projects. The exact coverage will be determined based on analysis of the these and other factors. If you have interest in participating in a community collection campaign, please send a short description of your project, including potential budget and a KMZ with an outline of your area(s) of interest. (The size and shape will be iteratively refined jointly after adjusting for budget, research objectives, and neighboring projects.) Please contact us if you require more information about this community campaign, and please forward this announcement to other researchers that may have an interest in such data collection. The more projects we can organize together, the larger the areas we will be able to collect for individual projects. NCALM aims to begin data collection in March–May 2019. We will begin requesting permits to fly and collect data for the respective countries near the end of 2018. For more information, contact NCALM Director Ramesh L. Shrestha at rshrest2 [at] central.uh.edu (subject: Mexico%20and%20Central%20America%20Lidar%20Campaign) (budgets) and Juan Carlos Fernandez Diaz at jfernan4 [at] central.uh.edu (subject: Mexico%20and%20Central%20America%20Lidar%20Campaign) (scheduling, logistics, permitting). Clarifying notes: NCALM is not providing the budget or funds to perform mapping, but rather organizing a campaign to optimize the funds researchers currently have, or can obtain, for their small- or medium-sized projects. If you are interested in pursuing cooperative work, please send NCALM a response that includes a KMZ(s) of your study area, a one-to-two paragraph description of you research objectives, and a budget of your potentially available funds. NCALM will work with PIs to develop a plan to allow data collection in their focus area(s). Additionally, please provide NCALM with information regarding contacts that you have in the foreign country (and locale) of interest and current work permits that you have obtained. Depending on the country, NCALM is required to have varying permits to perform flights or work in specific areas. Deadlines: NCALM is requesting a preliminary commitment by Friday, November 2, 2018, so we can begin the paperwork and preparation of export licenses and permits to the various countries. A final commitment and confirmation of funds will be requested by Friday, March 1, 2019, so the mapping campaign can be executed during March–May 2019.