News
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Kern River Canyon Lidar Dataset Now Available August 13, 2019 A 250 square kilometer dataset from the Kern River Canyon is now available on OpenTopography. The area of interest was the Kern River between Bakersfield and Isabella Lake in California.... |
 A 250 square kilometer dataset from the Kern River Canyon is now available on OpenTopography. The area of interest was the Kern River between Bakersfield and Isabella Lake in California. The data are part of a study of erosion and sedimentation in the lower Kern River drainage. More information and access to the data can be found here. |
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Geosensing Systems Engineering Seeks Instructional Faculty June 29, 2019 Geosensing Systems Engineering Instructional Faculty Positions The Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering (CEE) at the University of Houston invites applications for part-time... |
 Geosensing Systems Engineering Instructional Faculty Positions The Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering (CEE) at the University of Houston invites applications for part-time instructional faculty positions in the Geosensing Systems Engineering (GSE) program. Qualifications: The applicant must have an earned Ph.D. in geomatics, geodetic science, and/or a related field of civil/environmental/aerospace/mechanical engineering or equivalent professional experience. The candidate should be able to teach undergraduate and/or Master's level graduate courses related to one or more of the following areas: Geostatistics (CIVE 6393), Fundamentals of Plane Surveying (CIVE 3380), Legal Principles and Boundary Surveying (CIVE 4382), Digital Photogrammetry (CIVE 5375), and Survey Measurement & Analysis (CIVE 5386). Details on these courses can be found at the following link: CCE CEE Geomatics. University and Department: The University of Houston is located in a park-like campus a few minutes from downtown Houston with over 37,000 undergraduate students and 8,000 graduate students. The CEE department currently has 20 tenured or tenure-track faculty members, with over 260 undergraduates and over 130 graduate students. Houston is the fourth largest city in the U.S. with over 6.6 million in population in the greater Houston area. It is the "energy capital of the world" and houses the largest medical center in the world. The greater Houston area offers state-of-the-art recreational facilities, world-class arts and cultural activities, excellent schools, and affordable housing. How to Apply: Applications should include a cover letter, complete contact information for three professional references, and a curriculum vitae. Application package should be sent to Dr. Craig Glennie via email at clglennie [at] uh.edu. The University of Houston, with one of the most diverse student bodies in the U.S., seeks to recruit and retain a diverse community of scholars. The University of Houston is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. Minorities, women, veterans, and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply. The University of Houston is responsive to the needs of dual career couples. |
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Field Update for 2019 Mexico and Central America Lidar Collection Campaign June 20, 2019 The National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping completed four projects in Chiapas and Tabasco, Mexico, for several PIs. After small delays upon entering the country, NCALM was able to map... |
 The National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping completed four projects in Chiapas and Tabasco, Mexico, for several PIs. After small delays upon entering the country, NCALM was able to map over 1,000 km2, with eight flights over nine days, throughout east Tabasco, the Palenque area, and northeast Chiapas. The team based out of the Villahermosa International Airport.
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Seed Project Data from Guadalupe Mountains Released May 2, 2019 A new NCALM dataset has been released by OpenTopography. The dataset, covering 63 km2 over McKittrick Canyon in West Texas and Southern New Mexico, was collected for a 2017 Seed Proposal... |
 A new NCALM dataset has been released by OpenTopography. The dataset, covering 63 km2 over McKittrick Canyon in West Texas and Southern New Mexico, was collected for a 2017 Seed Proposal titled, “Quantifying Rock Strength Controls on Landscape Morphology in the Guadalupe Mountains, NM/TX.” Read more at opentopography.org. Additional information about the Student Seed Proposal program can be found here. |
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Zhiyue Sun Defends Ph.D. Dissertation May 1, 2019 Doctoral student Zhiyue Sun successfully defended his dissertation titled, "Estimating Glacier Ice Thickness and Mass Balance using Multiple Spaceborne Geodetic Techniques." Numerous... |
 Doctoral student Zhiyue Sun successfully defended his dissertation titled, "Estimating Glacier Ice Thickness and Mass Balance using Multiple Spaceborne Geodetic Techniques." Numerous spaceborne remote sensing techniques have been used to obtain different geodetic observations of glaciers. Contemporary estimates from these approaches yield large discrepancies in certain glacierized areas, such as the Nyainqen Tanglha, and other glacierized regions, such as the Novaya Zemlya, have been under-studied. To characterize and quantify accurate glacier mass balance estimates over Nyainqen Tanglha and Novaya Zemlya, the dissertation proposed an iterative velocity-based method to estimate thickness. First, a new iterative method, which estimates ice thickness using surface velocity and surface topography was presented. Second, traditional spaceborne techniques of observing surface mass balance were tested in the Novaya Zemlya. Finally, the proposed thickness estimate method was applied to the four largest glaciers in the Nyainqen Tanglha. Thickness distribution maps from 2008 to 2016 were obtained, and mass balance and thickness changes were determined accordingly. Zhiyue’s Geosensing Systems Engineering & Sciences (GSES) advisor was Dr. Hyongki Lee. Congratulations, Zhiyue! |
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Chaco Canyon Lidar Dataset Released April 22, 2019 Over 500 km2 of lidar data at Chaco Culture National Historical Park and the surrounding area are now available on OpenTopography. The project was mapped by NCALM in 2016 as part of an NSF... |
 Over 500 km2 of lidar data at Chaco Culture National Historical Park and the surrounding area are now available on OpenTopography. The project was mapped by NCALM in 2016 as part of an NSF proposal, Collaborative Research: Three Dimensional Landscape Reconstruction and Land Use Modeling at Chaco Canyon, New Mexico. |
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New Lidar Dataset Covering Portion of San Andreas Fault Available April 2, 2019 OpenTopography has released a new publicly-available NCALM lidar dataset covering 28 km2 of the San Andreas Fault near Parkfield, California. The data were part of the Seed Proposal program... |
 OpenTopography has released a new publicly-available NCALM lidar dataset covering 28 km2 of the San Andreas Fault near Parkfield, California. The data were part of the Seed Proposal program and collected for a student PI. Read more at opentopography.org, where the data is also available. You can find out more about the Student Seed Proposal program here. |
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NCALM Announces 2018 Seed Proposal Winners March 22, 2019 2018 Student Seed Proposal Winners Selected The National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping surveys multiple projects each year for graduate student PIs whose research would be enhanced by... |
 2018 Student Seed Proposal Winners Selected The National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping surveys multiple projects each year for graduate student PIs whose research would be enhanced by airborne lidar data and visible imagery. Students write and submit a two- to three-page proposal to be considered for an award (details at: ncalm.cive.uh.edu/seed/about). The applications are reviewed by the NCALM Steering Committee, who then select winners based on intellectual merit and broader impact. NCALM would like to announce that the 2018 seed proposal winners have been awarded. There were 36 submissions, and eight projects were selected. Congratulations to the following students (and their advisors): Joel Eklof (Rebecca Neumann) University of Washington Advective heat transfer by rain as a mechanism of soil warming, CH4 release, and permafrost thaw James Guilinger (Andrew Gray) University of California, Riverside Source attribution of eroded sediments from post-fire runoff events using nested scales of sequential change detection Thomas Herbst (Alan Whittington) University of Missouri A bird's eye view of lava domes: Airborne laser swath mapping of Lassen Volcanic Center, Lassen Volcanic National Park, CA Nate Mitchell (Brian Yanites) Indiana University Variations in bedrock cliff morphologies with fracture density and incision rate along a transient stream Miles Reed (Nicole West) Central Michigan University Chemical erosion response to transient physical erosion along the path of a migrating knickpoint Alba Mar Rodríguez Padilla (Michael E. Oskin) University of California, Davis Constraining rheology from lidar-based comparisons of seismogenic versus creeping normal faults Cole M. Speed (Zoltan Sylvester & David Mohrig) University of Texas at Austin Interpreting fluvial processes from the ancient rock record: Linking geomorphology to stratigraphy using 3-D outcrops of exhumed channel-belt deposits, Eastern Utah, USA Kirk Townsend (Marin Clark) University of Michigan The role of extreme events in setting the pace and magnitude of landscape change: Post-fire debris flows in the Santa Monica Mountains, Southern California |
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Logistics Planning Begins for Mexico and Central America Lidar Collection Campaign March 12, 2019 Planning for the 2019 Mexico and Central America Lidar Collection Campaign for Small- and Medium-Sized Projects is ongoing. Currently there are 14 committed projects in Mexico, Belize,... |
 Planning for the 2019 Mexico and Central America Lidar Collection Campaign for Small- and Medium-Sized Projects is ongoing. Currently there are 14 committed projects in Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras. NCALM has applied for a temporary export license of the mapping equipment and is working with project PIs to acquire the necessary permits for each location. NCALM is enthusiastic about this first international small-project campaign and is eager to begin the data collection portion. Principal Investigators can expect regular updates through email as we coordinate and arrange assistance for each project. We anticipate beginning to map in April/May. |
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UH Researchers to Share Magic of Archaeological Discoveries and Technology February 22, 2019 NCALM Adventures Topic of Lecture at Houston Museum of Natural Science Throughout the year, the Houston Museum of Natural Science hosts a distinguished lecture series focused on the... |
 NCALM Adventures Topic of Lecture at Houston Museum of Natural Science
Throughout the year, the Houston Museum of Natural Science hosts a distinguished lecture series focused on the latest scientific discoveries and a variety of topics presented by experts in each field. The last lecture in February is titled “Maya Megalopolis and Ancient Secrets Revealed by Airborne Lidar.” |
A special thanks goes to Carlos Gustavo Rosado Macosay, who granted access and electricity in his home to set up and operate a GPS base station in Tenosique. This was made possible through Takeshi Inomata's student Miguel Omar Garcia Mollinedo, and his father Miguel Garcia Hernandez. The NCALM team is grateful to Charles Golden and the Proyecto Arqueológico Busiljá-Chocoliá team for operating a base station at Finca Vallescondido, and to the Hotel Tulijá Express Palenque for providing a location for the final GPS station. Additionally, Keiko Taranishi of INAH Palenque did tremendous work in assisting NCALM complete the projects.
The crew, pilot, and aircraft have moved to Guatemala to continue working on multiple projects. Several hundred square kilometers are planned to be mapped before the team moves to other locations, including Belize and El Salvador. Follow @NCALM_UH on Twitter for more updates.
