Aerial Imaging And Remote Sensing Efforts At University Of Maryland Eastern Shore

The aerial imaging and remote sensing efforts that were initiated on UMES campus in collaboration with NASA Wallops Flight Facility with the undergraduate experiential learning project titled UMESAIR (Undergraduate Multidisciplinary Earth Science Airborne Imaging Research) have recently been integrated with ASTI (Airborne Science and Technology Institute) project and AIRSPACES (Aerial Imaging and Remote Sensing for Precision Agriculture and Environmental Stewardship) project. The ASTI project focuses on training undergraduate students to fly remote controlled fixed wing model aircrafts, as well as, acquire aerial images with analog video and digital cameras in the infrared, thermal, and, visible regions of electromagnetic spectrum. AIRSPACES project focuses on aerial imaging of agricultural fields for yield estimation, weed detection, and crop health monitoring efforts. Initial efforts undertaken at UMES campus for ASTI and AIRSPACES project are highlighted in the paper. Efforts involving rectification and geo-referencing of acquired aerial images are described. Preliminary results of mosaicking geo-referenced images using ARCMAP and MATLAB software are also provided. Future expansion of the projects using UAV (Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle) helicopters and manned airplanes equipped with color infrared digital cameras are also advanced.