eyes in the sky: alta partners begin to capture rising seas · future storms and rising seas....
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Florida International UniversityFIU Digital Commons
Sea Level Rise Collection
10-6-2014
Eyes in the Sky: ALTA Partners Begin to CaptureRising SeasRobert E. Gutsche Jr.School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Florida International University, [email protected]
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Recommended CitationGutsche, Robert E. Jr., "Eyes in the Sky: ALTA Partners Begin to Capture Rising Seas" (2014). Sea Level Rise Collection. Paper 22.http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/sea_level_rise/22
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Eyes in the Sky: ALTAPartners Begin to CaptureRising SeasOCTOBER 6, 2014 / TED GUTSCHE / 0 COMMENTS
FIU-ALTA Partnership Captures High-Resolution Images of SLR
http://www.eyesontherise.org/alta/http://www.eyesontherise.org/alta/http://www.eyesontherise.org/author/ted/http://www.eyesontherise.org/
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A collaboration between a Miami area high-tech company and Florida
International University has improved ways to capture South Florida’s
environment to help scientists, citizens, and local governments prepare for
future storms and rising seas.
Already, ALTA Systems (www.altapic.com) and scientists with Florida
International University collaborated earlier this year to gather high
resolution images of all of the City of Sweetwater. In that project,
researchers used five balloons from 100 to 200 feet in the sky and a ground
image system to capture 18,305 aerial images and 32,320 street level images.
Images provided city officials with information about random objects that
have been abandoned on rooftops that could become “wind missiles,” clogged
storm drains that could contribute to street flooding, and potential property
violations.
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In partnership with FIU, ALTA uses its proprietary systems and software
which relies on flying lighter than air platforms and high-resolution cameras
as high as 150 feet above the ground to capture images that may never
before have been seen in such detail.
ALTA’s balloons can be tethered to the ground and directed remotely.
Captured images are then converted into Virtual Field Reports (VFR) to
provide a bird’s-eye view of a geography’s built and natural environments
with significant clarity that can help in times of hurricane preparedness by
identifying dangerous possible flying objects, electric lines, fire hydrants,
street drains, pollution, and illegal dumping places which all can contribute to
problems during storms.
Such field reports will help city officials identify and map the coordinates and
address potential environmental hazards. This novel approach will allow
officials and citizens to quickly find potential problems and to address such
problems quickly and efficiently. Watch VFRs here.
Measuring Sea Level Rise From the Sky
ALTA technology has a direct influence on how citizens and public officials
can understand environmental changes and impacts – particularly of sea
level rise in South Florida.
“When it comes to sea level rise, like
everything else, seeing is believing,” said
ALTA CEO John Ciampa. “For this reason
imagery has become the main staple of
modern media. ALTA imagery provides a
unique perspective from ground level and
low altitude aerial cameras collecting a
mosaic of revealing oblique angled, super resolution images.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mdj0cQS2PGkhttp://i2.wp.com/www.eyesontherise.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Screen-Shot-2014-10-05-at-11.49.04-AM.png
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ALTA’s approach to gathering detailed images of landscapes and
environments is a unique one that provides outcomes unlike current options
of making georeferenced images. “All other methods of capturing oblique
georeferenced imagery involve aircraft and pilots,” Ciampa said. “These
methods are less revealing because of the altitude limitations and other
obstructions between the airplane camera and the ground; they are also less
frequent because of the cost of such missions.”
ALTA’s products also offer more impactful images for lower financial
investment. “ALTA imagery provides unobstructed views and is more current
because of its low cost,” said ALTA’s Ciampa. “ALTA aerial images are
captured from smart balloons which also sense air quality and other
atmospheric data all of which is instantly available to any device which has
access to the Internet.”
Capturing Oct. 9 Tides on Miami Beach
Beginning early on Oct. 9, FIU students and faculty will be using boats and
vehicles to deploy these balloons and cameras as more than 70 high school
and college students from Miami-Dade County spend several hours
examining potential flood waters on Miami Beach as part of King Tide Day,
the day when tides have led to massive flooding throughout parts of South
Florida.
Ciampa said the Oct. 9 King Tide Day event will be a perfect opportunity to
once again use ALTA’s technology to capture Miami’s environments through
collaboration with college and high school students who will not only learn
about the company’s technology but to see how such technology can help
inform citizens about their environments.
Water samples and other data gathered on Oct. 9 will be used by MAST @
FIU high school students throughout October to conduct classroom
experiments, while high-resolution images of the Miami Beach coastline, in
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some instances using ALTA balloons to make aerial photographs, will record
the movement of water during the King Tide.
“We’re very excited about this project,” said FIU journalism professor Susan
Jacobson. “As far as I know, it’s the first of its kind to harness personal
technology and open data sources to help inform average citizens about the
impact of sea-level rise on their homes and businesses.”
The Oct. 9 event will kick-off at 8 a.m. with a public discussion about climate
change led by The CLEO (Climate Leadership Engagement Opportunities)
Institute on the fourth floor of the Miami Beach Urban Studios, 420 Lincoln
Road. CLEO was also involved in a Sept. 29 rally that announced the King
Tide event at FIU’s Biscayne Bay Campus in North Miami and worked with 30
MAST students in preparation of the King Tide events on Oct. 9. More than
200 students, educators, and representatives of the local tech community
attended the event.
UPCOMING EVENT
WHO: Florida International University’s School of Journalism andMass Communication
WHAT: eyesontherise.org King Tide Day
WHERE: Miami Beach
WHEN: Oct. 9 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
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Florida International UniversityFIU Digital Commons10-6-2014
Eyes in the Sky: ALTA Partners Begin to Capture Rising SeasRobert E. Gutsche Jr.Recommended Citation
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