The National Aeronautics and Space Administration today
announced the selection of 20 research projects to develop new
public and private sector applications of space-based and
airborne remote sensing technologies.
Funding of the projects represents the initiation of a new
program aimed at increasing broader use of NASA-developed
technology for gathering and analyzing valuable information about
Earth and ocean resources through remote satellite or aircraft
observations.
The program, jointly sponsored by NASA's Office of Space
Science and Applications and Office of Commercial Programs,
Washington, D.C., will fund up to $4 million of research
annually.
Projects funded under the program will identify and research
new commercial products and services that might be developed from
use of existing technology and explore ways of improving and
expanding the uses of remote sensing by public sector agencies or
commercial ventures.
Commercial development projects will be managed by the
Office of Commercial Programs through the Earth Resources
Laboratory at NASA's National Space Technology Laboratories
(NSTL), Mississippi.
Public sector applications projects and those requiring
significant technology development will be managed by the Earth
Science and Applications Division of NASA's Office of Space
Science and Applications.
The 20 projects selected for negotiation leading to 1-year
funding contracts, with options to extend funding two additional
years, are:
COMMERCIAL APPLICATION PROJECTS
o Development of Practical, Cost Effective Methods Utilizing
Satellite Data for Forest Resources Management, proposed by
investigators affiliated with James W. Sewall Co., Old
Town, Maine; NSTL Earth Resources Laboratory; the University
of Maine, Orono.
o Commercial Development of an Ice Data and Forecasting System,
proposed by investigators affiliated with Batelle,
Columbus, Ohio; Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio; User
Systems Inc., Annandale, Va.; Naval Postgraduate School,
Monterey, Calif.; Weather Management Consultants, Anchorage,
Alaska; Mobil Research and Development Corp., Farmers Branch,
Texas; Amoco Production Co., Denver, Colorado; Unocal,
Brea, Calif.
o An Evaluation of Current, and Recommendations for Future Uses
of Remotely Sensed Data for Commercial Forest Inventory,
proposed by investigators affiliated with the University of
California, Berkeley.
o Application of the Airborne Ocean Color Imager for Commercial
Fishing, proposed by investigators affiliated with NASA's
Ames Research Center (ARC), Mountain View, Calif.; Daedalus
Enterprises, Ann Arbor, Michigan; National Marine Fisheries
Center, NSTL; Zapata Haynie Corp., Hammond, La.; Spectro
Scan Inc., Miami, Fla.
o An Environmental and Archeological Assessment of the Piedras
Negras Region of Guatemala and Mexico, proposed by
investigators affiliated with Middle Tennessee State
University, Murfreesboro; NSTL; National Geographic Society,
Washington, D.C.; Geoinformation Services, Starkville,
Miss.
o Commercial Environmental Sensitivity Index Mapping Using
Remote Sensing and GIS Technology, proposed by investigators
affiliated with RPI International, Inc., Columbia, South
Carolina; University of South Carolina, Columbia; NSTL
Earth Resources Laboratory.
o Efficient Updates of Vector-Coded Geographic Information
Systems Using Remotely Sensed Data, proposed by an
investigator affiliated with San Diego State University, San
Diego, Calif.
o Using Landsat to Provide Potato Production Estimates to
Columbia Basin Farmers and Processors, proposed by
investigators affiliated with Cropix, Inc., Hermiston,
Oregon; Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon; ARC.
o Algorith Development for an Integrated Satellite APT and
Ocean Color Scanner Receive/Process/Display System for Ocean-
Going Vessels, proposed by investigators affiliated with
Systems West, Inc., Carmel, Calif.
PUBLIC SECTOR APPLICATIONS/TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS
o Detection of Seasonal and Annual Changes in Migratory
Waterfowl Habitats in the Central Valley of California,
proposed by investigators affiliated with the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service and ARC.
o Applications of Remote Sensing for Landslide Hazard
Assessment, proposed by investigators affiliated with ARC;
U.S. Geological Survey; the U.S. Forest Service.
o Use of Spectral Resonance Imaging Techniques for the
Detection of Surface Alternation Effects Associated with
Hydrocarbon Reservoirs, proposed by investigators affiliated
with ARCO Oil and Gas Co., Dallas, Texas and the Jet
Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
o Development of Application of Remote Sensing of Longwave
Heating from TIROS Operational Sounder, proposed by
investigators affiliated with the University of Maryland,
College Park; National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration; the National Weather Service.
o Compiling and Editing Area Sampling Frames Using Digital Data
for Land Use Analysis and Boundary Definition, proposed by
investigators affiliated with the U.S. Department of
Agriculture and ARC.
o Application of Remote Sensing and Image Processing
Technologies: Sediment Transport and Land Loss Processes,
Coastal Louisiana, proposed by investigators affiliated with
Louisiana State University; Louisiana Geological Survey;
NSTL.
o Automated Satellite-Based Alarms: A Proposal to Develop and
Operate a Satellite-Based Fire Detection and Monitoring
Program for Western U.S., proposed by investigators
affiliated with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration; U.S. Department of Interior; the U.S.
Department of Agriculture.
o Locating Subsurface Gravel Deposits with Thermal Imagery,
proposed by investigators affiliated with the U.S. Forest
Service and NSTL.
o Applying Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques in Solving Rural
County Information Needs, proposed by investigators
affiliated with Purdue Research Foundation; Purdue University
DRT, Inc., all of Lafayette, Indiana.
o Satellite Inventory of Minnesota Forest Resources, proposed
by investigators affiliated with the University of Minnesota,
Minneapolis, and the Minnesota Department of Natural
Resources, St. Paul.
o Geographic Information Analysis: An Ecological Approach for
the Management of Wildlife on the Forested Landscape,
proposed by investigators affiliated with Oregon State
University; the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife; the
U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Science Lab.
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