scholarly journals Deploying four optical UAV-based sensors over grassland: challenges and limitations

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 163-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. K. von Bueren ◽  
A. Burkart ◽  
A. Hueni ◽  
U. Rascher ◽  
M. P. Tuohy ◽  
...  

Abstract. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) equipped with lightweight spectral sensors facilitate non-destructive, near-real-time vegetation analysis. In order to guarantee robust scientific analysis, data acquisition protocols and processing methodologies need to be developed and new sensors must be compared with state-of-the-art instruments. Four different types of optical UAV-based sensors (RGB camera, converted near-infrared camera, six-band multispectral camera and high spectral resolution spectrometer) were deployed and compared in order to evaluate their applicability for vegetation monitoring with a focus on precision agricultural applications. Data were collected in New Zealand over ryegrass pastures of various conditions and compared to ground spectral measurements. The UAV STS spectrometer and the multispectral camera MCA6 (Multiple Camera Array) were found to deliver spectral data that can match the spectral measurements of an ASD at ground level when compared over all waypoints (UAV STS: R2=0.98; MCA6: R2=0.92). Variability was highest in the near-infrared bands for both sensors while the band multispectral camera also overestimated the green peak reflectance. Reflectance factors derived from the RGB (R2=0.63) and converted near-infrared (R2=0.65) cameras resulted in lower accordance with reference measurements. The UAV spectrometer system is capable of providing narrow-band information for crop and pasture management. The six-band multispectral camera has the potential to be deployed to target specific broad wavebands if shortcomings in radiometric limitations can be addressed. Large-scale imaging of pasture variability can be achieved by either using a true colour or a modified near-infrared camera. Data quality from UAV-based sensors can only be assured, if field protocols are followed and environmental conditions allow for stable platform behaviour and illumination.

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 3837-3864 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. von Bueren ◽  
A. Burkart ◽  
A. Hueni ◽  
U. Rascher ◽  
M. Tuohy ◽  
...  

Abstract. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) equipped with lightweight spectral sensors facilitate non-destructive, near real time vegetation analysis. In order to guarantee quality scientific analysis, data acquisition protocols and processing methodologies need to be developed and new sensors must be trialed against state of the art instruments. In the following study, four different types of optical UAV based sensors (RGB camera, near infrared camera, six band multispectral camera, and a high resolution spectrometer) were compared and validated in order to evaluate their applicability for vegetation monitoring with a focus on precision agricultural applications. Data was collected in New Zealand over ryegrass pastures of various conditions. The UAV sensor data was validated with ground spectral measurements. It was found that large scale imaging of pasture variability can be achieved by either using a true color or a modified near infrared camera. A six band multispectral camera was used as an imaging spectrometer capable of identifying in field variations of vegetation status that correlate with ground spectral measurements. The high resolution spectrometer was validated and found to deliver spectral data that can match the quality of ground spectral measurements.


2020 ◽  
Vol 642 ◽  
pp. A72 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Moutou ◽  
S. Dalal ◽  
J.-F. Donati ◽  
E. Martioli ◽  
C. P. Folsom ◽  
...  

SPIRou is the newest spectropolarimeter and high-precision velocimeter that has recently been installed at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope on Maunakea, Hawaii. It operates in the near-infrared and simultaneously covers the 0.98–2.35 μm domain at high spectral resolution. SPIRou is optimized for exoplanet search and characterization with the radial-velocity technique, and for polarization measurements in stellar lines and subsequent magnetic field studies. The host of the transiting hot Jupiter HD 189733 b has been observed during early science runs. We present the first near-infrared spectropolarimetric observations of the planet-hosting star as well as the stellar radial velocities as measured by SPIRou throughout the planetary orbit and two transit sequences. The planetary orbit and Rossiter-McLaughlin anomaly are both investigated and modeled. The orbital parameters and obliquity are all compatible with the values found in the optical. The obtained radial-velocity precision is compatible with about twice the photon-noise estimates for a K2 star under these conditions. The additional scatter around the orbit, of about 8 m s−1, agrees with previous results that showed that the activity-induced scatter is the dominant factor. We analyzed the polarimetric signal, Zeeman broadening, and chromospheric activity tracers such as the 1083nm HeI and the 1282nm Paβ lines to investigate stellar activity. First estimates of the average unsigned magnetic flux from the Zeeman broadening of the FeI lines give a magnetic flux of 290 ± 58 G, and the large-scale longitudinal field shows typical values of a few Gauss. These observations illustrate the potential of SPIRou for exoplanet characterization and magnetic and stellar activity studies.


2020 ◽  
Vol 496 (4) ◽  
pp. 4574-4592 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Y Aaron Yung ◽  
Rachel S Somerville ◽  
Steven L Finkelstein ◽  
Gergö Popping ◽  
Romeel Davé ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Galaxies forming in low-mass haloes are thought to be primarily responsible for reionizing the Universe during the first billion years after the big bang. Yet, these haloes are extremely inefficient at forming stars in the nearby Universe. In this work, we address this apparent tension, and ask whether a physically motivated model of galaxy formation that reproduces the observed abundance of faint galaxies in the nearby Universe is also consistent with available observational constraints on the reionization history. By interfacing the Santa Cruz semi-analytic model for galaxy formation with an analytic reionization model, we constructed a computationally efficient pipeline that connects ‘ground-level’ galaxy formation physics to ‘top-level’ cosmological-scale observables. Based on photometric properties of the galaxy populations predicted up to z = 15, we compute the reionization history of intergalactic hydrogen. We quantify the three degenerate quantities that influence the total ionizing photon budget, including the abundance of galaxies, the intrinsic production rate of ionizing photons, and the LyC escape fraction. We explore covariances between these quantities using a Markov chain Monte Carlo method. We find that our locally calibrated model is consistent with all currently available constraints on the reionization history, under reasonable assumptions about the LyC escape fraction. We quantify the fraction of ionizing photons produced by galaxies of different luminosities and find that the galaxies expected to be detected in James Webb Space Telescope Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) wide and deep surveys are responsible for producing ∼40–80 per cent of ionizing photons throughout the Epoch of Reionization. All results presented in this work are available at https://www.simonsfoundation.org/semi-analytic-forecasts-for-jwst/.


2017 ◽  
Vol 68 (2) ◽  
pp. 317-322
Author(s):  
Anca Mihaela Mocanu ◽  
Constantin Luca ◽  
Alina Costina Luca

The purpose of this research is to synthetize, characterize and thermal degradation of new heterolytic derivates with potential biological properties. The derivates synthesis was done by obtaining new molecules with pyralozone structure which combine two pharmacophore entities: the amidosulfonyl-R1,R2 phenoxyacetil with the 3,5-dimethyl pyrazole which can have potential biological properties. The synthesis stages of the new products are presented as well as the elemental analysis data and IR, 1H-NMR spectral measurements made for elucidating the chemical structures and thermostability study which makes evident the temperature range proper for their use and storage. The obtained results were indicative of a good correlation of the structure with the thermal stability as estimated by means of the initial degradation temperatures as well as with the degradation mechanism by means of the TG-FTIR analysis.


2021 ◽  
Vol 502 (3) ◽  
pp. 3942-3954
Author(s):  
D Hung ◽  
B C Lemaux ◽  
R R Gal ◽  
A R Tomczak ◽  
L M Lubin ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT We present a new mass function of galaxy clusters and groups using optical/near-infrared (NIR) wavelength spectroscopic and photometric data from the Observations of Redshift Evolution in Large-Scale Environments (ORELSE) survey. At z ∼ 1, cluster mass function studies are rare regardless of wavelength and have never been attempted from an optical/NIR perspective. This work serves as a proof of concept that z ∼ 1 cluster mass functions are achievable without supplemental X-ray or Sunyaev-Zel’dovich data. Measurements of the cluster mass function provide important contraints on cosmological parameters and are complementary to other probes. With ORELSE, a new cluster finding technique based on Voronoi tessellation Monte Carlo (VMC) mapping, and rigorous purity and completeness testing, we have obtained ∼240 galaxy overdensity candidates in the redshift range 0.55 < z < 1.37 at a mass range of 13.6 < log (M/M⊙) < 14.8. This mass range is comparable to existing optical cluster mass function studies for the local universe. Our candidate numbers vary based on the choice of multiple input parameters related to detection and characterization in our cluster finding algorithm, which we incorporated into the mass function analysis through a Monte Carlo scheme. We find cosmological constraints on the matter density, Ωm, and the amplitude of fluctuations, σ8, of $\Omega _{m} = 0.250^{+0.104}_{-0.099}$ and $\sigma _{8} = 1.150^{+0.260}_{-0.163}$. While our Ωm value is close to concordance, our σ8 value is ∼2σ higher because of the inflated observed number densities compared to theoretical mass function models owing to how our survey targeted overdense regions. With Euclid and several other large, unbiased optical surveys on the horizon, VMC mapping will enable optical/NIR cluster cosmology at redshifts much higher than what has been possible before.


2021 ◽  
Vol 503 (1) ◽  
pp. 270-291
Author(s):  
F Navarete ◽  
A Damineli ◽  
J E Steiner ◽  
R D Blum

ABSTRACT W33A is a well-known example of a high-mass young stellar object showing evidence of a circumstellar disc. We revisited the K-band NIFS/Gemini North observations of the W33A protostar using principal components analysis tomography and additional post-processing routines. Our results indicate the presence of a compact rotating disc based on the kinematics of the CO absorption features. The position–velocity diagram shows that the disc exhibits a rotation curve with velocities that rapidly decrease for radii larger than 0.1 arcsec (∼250 au) from the central source, suggesting a structure about four times more compact than previously reported. We derived a dynamical mass of 10.0$^{+4.1}_{-2.2}$ $\rm {M}_\odot$ for the ‘disc + protostar’ system, about ∼33 per cent smaller than previously reported, but still compatible with high-mass protostar status. A relatively compact H2 wind was identified at the base of the large-scale outflow of W33A, with a mean visual extinction of ∼63 mag. By taking advantage of supplementary near-infrared maps, we identified at least two other point-like objects driving extended structures in the vicinity of W33A, suggesting that multiple active protostars are located within the cloud. The closest object (Source B) was also identified in the NIFS field of view as a faint point-like object at a projected distance of ∼7000 au from W33A, powering extended K-band continuum emission detected in the same field. Another source (Source C) is driving a bipolar $\rm {H}_2$ jet aligned perpendicular to the rotation axis of W33A.


2020 ◽  
Vol 500 (3) ◽  
pp. 3920-3925
Author(s):  
Wolfgang Brandner ◽  
Hans Zinnecker ◽  
Taisiya Kopytova

ABSTRACT Only a small number of exoplanets have been identified in stellar cluster environments. We initiated a high angular resolution direct imaging search using the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and its Near-Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS) instrument for self-luminous giant planets in orbit around seven white dwarfs in the 625 Myr old nearby (≈45 pc) Hyades cluster. The observations were obtained with Near-Infrared Camera 1 (NIC1) in the F110W and F160W filters, and encompass two HST roll angles to facilitate angular differential imaging. The difference images were searched for companion candidates, and radially averaged contrast curves were computed. Though we achieve the lowest mass detection limits yet for angular separations ≥0.5 arcsec, no planetary mass companion to any of the seven white dwarfs, whose initial main-sequence masses were >2.8 M⊙, was found. Comparison with evolutionary models yields detection limits of ≈5–7 Jupiter masses (MJup) according to one model, and between 9 and ≈12 MJup according to another model, at physical separations corresponding to initial semimajor axis of ≥5–8 au (i.e. before the mass-loss events associated with the red and asymptotic giant branch phase of the host star). The study provides further evidence that initially dense cluster environments, which included O- and B-type stars, might not be highly conducive to the formation of massive circumstellar discs, and their transformation into giant planets (with m ≥ 6 MJup and a ≥6 au). This is in agreement with radial velocity surveys for exoplanets around G- and K-type giants, which did not find any planets around stars more massive than ≈3 M⊙.


Author(s):  
Pengrui Zhuang ◽  
Ke Xiang ◽  
Xiangxi Meng ◽  
Guohe Wang ◽  
Ziyuan Li ◽  
...  

A facile and green method was developed to fabricate Nd-DTPA on a large scale without byproducts for CT/spectral CT and NIR II fluorescence imaging of the gastrointestinal tract in vivo.


Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (12) ◽  
pp. 4112
Author(s):  
Fidel Alejandro Rodríguez-Corbo ◽  
Leyre Azpilicueta ◽  
Mikel Celaya-Echarri ◽  
Peio Lopez-Iturri ◽  
Ana V. Alejos ◽  
...  

The characterization of different vegetation/vehicle densities and their corresponding effects on large-scale channel parameters such as path loss can provide important information during the deployment of wireless communications systems under outdoor conditions. In this work, a deterministic analysis based on ray-launching (RL) simulation and empirical measurements for vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications for outdoor parking environments and smart parking solutions is presented. The study was carried out at a frequency of 28 GHz using directional antennas, with the transmitter raised above ground level under realistic use case conditions. Different radio channel impairments were weighed in, considering the progressive effect of first, the density of an incremental obstructed barrier of trees, and the effect of different parked vehicle densities within the parking lot. On the basis of these scenarios, large-scale parameters and temporal dispersion characteristics were obtained, and the effect of vegetation/vehicle density changes was assessed. The characterization of propagation impairments that different vegetation/vehicle densities can impose onto the wireless radio channel in the millimeter frequency range was performed. Finally, the results obtained in this research can aid communication deployment in outdoor parking conditions.


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