Our Mission
The mission of the RSGAL is to advance the development and application of remote sensing and geospatial analysis to inventory and monitor natural resources and environment through research, instruction, mentoring, and outreach.
Water and Wetlands
RSGAL researchers have decades of experience developing water clarity mapping methods. A related focus is monitoring terrestrial and estuarine wetlands with remotely sensed data.
Land Cover and Use Mapping
Assessing growing impacts on our forests, wetlands, lakes, and croplands requires remote sensing. RSGAL research includes novel methods for studying landscape change, including the mapping and monitoring of urban tree canopy cover, impervious surfaces, urbanization, crop production, and natural resources.
Remote Sensing of Forests
Our forests are under increasing pressure from natural and anthropogenic forces such as climate change, disease, pests, parcelization, and fragmentation. Our research focuses on advanced forest mensuration and inventory using imagery, lidar, and UAS.
Methods Development: OBIA, Lidar, Machine Learning, and Unmanned Aircraft Systems
A major focus of the lab is developing novel methods to process, analyze, and visualize remotely sensed data. Especially important are object-based image analysis (OBIA) methods using multiple data types and a variety of machine learning algorithms. In recent years we have also invested heavily in UAS research, education, and outreach.
