Topic Review
Homothetic Behavior of Betweenness Centralities
       In mathematics, a homothetic behavior is characterized by a transformation of an affine space by a factor λ and results in an invariance of this space form or configuration, albeit its overall scale changes. In this sense, if two objects or parts of those objects have distinct sizes, but conserve the same appearance, they can be considered homothetic. In networks, the occurrence of homothetic behaviors would imply that a section of the network, when modelled independently, ought to retain a certain regularity in their distribution of centrality hierarchies (visual similitude) when compared to a larger section, independently modelled as well, that contains it. Hence, the smaller network maintains its overall proportions (configuration, hierarchies and values) across scales. This visual similitude was perceived while apposing several Normalized Angular Choice (NACH) models, a Space Syntax’ derivative from mathematical betweenness. Network homotheties, due to their invariability in form and value, can be used as an alternative to extensive network generalization for the construction of large spatial networks. Hence, data maps can be constructed sooner and more accurately as “pieces of a puzzle”, since each individual lesser scale graph possesses a faster processing time.
  • 945
  • 21 Feb 2021
Topic Review
Methods for Measurement of Free Water Surface
Turbulent free-surface flows are encountered in several engineering applications and are typically characterized by the entrainment of air bubbles due to intense mixing and surface deformation. The resulting complex multiphase structure of the air–water interface presents a challenge in precise and reliable measurements of the free-water-surface topography. Conventional methods by manometers, wave probes, point gauges or electromagnetic/ultrasonic devices are proven and reliable, but also time-consuming, with limited accuracy and are mostly intrusive. Accurate spatial and temporal measurements of complex three-dimensional free-surface flows in natural and man-made hydraulic structures are only viable by high-resolution non-contact methods, namely, The light detection and ranging (LIDAR)-based laser scanning, photogrammetric reconstruction from cameras with overlapping field of view, or laser triangulation that combines laser ranging with high-speed imaging data. In the absence of seeding particles and optical calibration targets, sufficient flow aeration is essential for the operation of both laser- and photogrammetry-based methods, with local aeration properties significantly affecting the measurement uncertainty of laser-based methods.
  • 945
  • 16 Feb 2023
Topic Review
BDS-3 Integrity Concept
Compared to the BeiDou regional navigation satellite system (BDS-2), the BeiDou global navigation satellite system (BDS-3) carried out a brand new integrity concept design and construction work, which defines and achieves the integrity functions for major civil open services (OS) signals such as B1C, B2a, and B1I. The integrity definition and calculation method of BDS-3 are introduced. The fault tree model for satellite signal-in-space (SIS) is used, to decompose and obtain the integrity risk bottom events. In response to the weakness in the space and ground segments of the system, a variety of integrity monitoring measures have been taken. On this basis, the design values for the new B1C/B2a signal and the original B1I signal are proposed, which are 0.9 × 10−5 and 0.8 × 10−5, respectively. The hybrid alarming mechanism of BDS-3, which has both the ground alarming approach and the satellite alarming approach, is explained. At last, an integrity risk analysis and verification work were carried out using the operating data of the system in 2019. The results show that the actual operation of the system is consistent with the conceptual design, which satisfies the integrity performance promised by BDS-3 in the ICAO SAPRs.
  • 942
  • 24 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Thundercloud Features in Different Regions
A comparison of thundercloud characteristics in different regions of the world was conducted. The clouds studied developed in India, China and in two regions of Russia. Several field projects were discussed. Cloud characteristics were measured by weather radars, the SEVERI instrument installed on board of the Meteosat satellite, and lightning detection systems. The statistical characteristics of the clouds were tabulated from radar scans and correlated with lightning observations. Thunderclouds in India differ significantly from those observed in other regions. The relationships among lightning strike frequency, supercooled cloud volume, and precipitation intensity were analyzed. In most cases, high correlation was observed between lightning strike frequency and supercooled volume. 
  • 936
  • 23 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Smart and Mechanized Agricultural Application
Smart farming can be applied to improve crop quality and profit and reduce costs by optimizing various processes such as environmental conditions, growth status, soil status, irrigation water, pest control, fertilizers, weed management, and greenhouse production environments
  • 930
  • 27 Jun 2022
Topic Review
Reconstruction of Remotely Sensed LST
Land surface temperature (LST) is an important environmental parameter in climate change, urban heat islands, drought, public health, and other fields. Thermal infrared (TIR) remote sensing is the main method used to obtain LST information over large spatial scales. However, cloud cover results in many data gaps in remotely sensed LST datasets, greatly limiting their practical applications. Many studies have sought to fill these data gaps and reconstruct cloud-free LST datasets over the last few decades. This paper reviews the progress of LST reconstruction research. A bibliometric analysis is conducted to provide a brief overview of the papers published in this field. The existing reconstruction algorithms can be grouped into five categories: spatial gap-filling methods, temporal gap-filling methods, spatiotemporal gap-filling methods, multi-source fusion-based gap-filling methods, and surface energy balance-based gap-filling methods. The principles, advantages, and limitations of these methods are described and discussed. The applications of these methods are also outlined. In addition, the validation of filled LST values’ cloudy pixels is an important concern in LST reconstruction. The different validation methods applied for reconstructed LST datasets are also reviewed herein. Finally, prospects for future developments in LST reconstruction are provided.
  • 901
  • 24 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Classification of Farmland Vegetation
The classification and identification of farmland vegetation includes classification based on vegetation index, spectral bands, multi-source data fusion, artificial intelligence learning, and drone remote sensing.
  • 883
  • 21 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Using Remote Sensing in Soil Salinization Mapping
Meeting current needs without compromising future generations’ ability to meet theirs is the only path toward achieving environmental sustainability. As the most valuable natural resource, soil faces global, regional, and local challenges, from quality degradation to mass losses brought on by salinization. These issues affect agricultural productivity and ecological balance, undermining sustainability and food security. Therefore, timely monitoring and accurate mapping of salinization processes are crucial, especially in semi-arid and arid regions where climate variability impacts have already reached alarming levels. Salt-affected soil mapping has enormous potential thanks to recent progress in remote sensing.
  • 882
  • 29 May 2023
Topic Review
Explore Mars by Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
The technology of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) has tremendous potential to support various successful space mission solutions. In general, different techniques for observing space objects are available, such as telescopes, probes, and flying spacecraft, orbiters, landers, and rovers. However, a detailed analysis has been carried out due to the benefits of UAVs relative to other planetary exploration techniques. A prototype UAV has been successfully simulated to fly on Mars’ surface. 
  • 880
  • 24 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Implementations in Urban Planning
The rapid growth of urban populations and the need for sustainable urban planning and development has made Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) a valuable tool for data collection, mapping, and monitoring.
  • 874
  • 12 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Earth Observation for Sustainable Infrastructure
Infrastructure is a fundamental sector for sustainable development and Earth observation has great potentials for sustainable infrastructure development (SID). However, implementations of the timely, large–scale and multi–source Earth observation are still limited in satisfying the huge global requirements of SID. This review demonstrates that Earth observation has great potentials for sustainable infrastructure development. EOSI can benefit about 85% of infrastructure influenced SDGs and 61% of all SDGs, but Earth observation has been implemented in only 15% of infrastructure influenced SDG targets, and 70% of the infrastructure influenced targets that can be directly or indirectly derived from Earth observation data have not been included in current SDG indicators.
  • 870
  • 21 Apr 2021
Topic Review
AeroVironment Global Observer
The AeroVironment Global Observer is a concept for a high-altitude, long endurance unmanned aerial vehicle, designed by AeroVironment (AV) to operate as a stratospheric geosynchronous satellite system with regional coverage. Two Global Observer aircraft, each flying for up to a week at an altitude of 55,000 to 65,000 feet (17,000 to 20,000 m), could alternate coverage over any area on the earth, providing a platform for communications relays, remote sensing, or long-term surveillance. In addition to flying above weather and above other conventional aircraft, operation at this altitude permits communications and sensor payloads on the aircraft to service an area on the surface of the earth up to 600 miles (970 km) in diameter, equivalent to more than 280,000 square miles (730,000 km2) of coverage. Global Observer may offer greater flexibility than a satellite and longer duration than conventional manned and unmanned aircraft.
  • 842
  • 20 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Detect Water Storage by Swarm
The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellite provides time-varying gravity field models that can detect total water storage change (TWSC) from April 2002 to June 2017, and its second-generation satellite, GRACE Follow-On (GRACE-FO), provides models from June 2018, so there is a one year gap. Swarm satellites are equipped with Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers, which can be used to recover the Earth’s time-varying gravitational field. Swarm’s time-varying gravitational field models (from December 2013 to June 2018) were solved by the International Combination Service for Time-variable Gravity Field Solutions (COST-G) and the Astronomical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences (ASI). On a timely scale, Swarm has the potential to fill the gap between the two generations of GRACE satellites. 
  • 835
  • 24 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy for Food Quality Evaluation
Laser-induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) is becoming an increasingly popular analytical technique for characterizing and identifying various products; its multi-element analysis, fast response, remote sensing, and sample preparation is minimal or nonexistent, and low running costs can significantly accelerate the analysis of foods with medicinal properties (FMPs). 
  • 830
  • 28 Jul 2022
Topic Review
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in Forest Health Monitoring
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are platforms that have been increasingly used over the last decade to collect data for forest insect pest and disease (FIPD) monitoring. These machines provide flexibility, cost efficiency, and a high temporal and spatial resolution of remotely sensed data. 
  • 796
  • 28 Jul 2022
Topic Review
Digital Elevation Models
Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) of planet Mars are crucial for many remote sensing applications and for landing site characterization of rover missions. Shape from Shading (SfS) is known to work well as a complementary method to greatly enhance the quality of photogrammetrically obtained DEMs of planetary surfaces with respect to the effective resolution and the overall accuracy.
  • 786
  • 21 Jun 2022
Topic Review
Deep Learning for Remote Sensing Image Scene Classification
Scene classification in remote sensing images aims to categorize image scenes automatically into relevant classes like residential areas, cultivation land, forests, etc. The implementation of deep learning (DL) for scene classification is an emerging tendency, with an effort to achieve maximum accuracy.
  • 756
  • 13 Oct 2023
Topic Review
SARS-CoV-2 Transmission in Livestock Industry and Agro-environment
The outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a public health emergency that turns the year 2020–2021 into annus horribilis for millions of people across international boundaries. The interspecies transmission of this zoonotic virus and mutated variants are aided by exposure dynamics of infected aerosols, fomites and intermediate reservoirs. The spike in the first, second and third waves of coronavirus confirms that herd immunity is not yet reached and everyone including livestock is still vulnerable to the infection. Of serious concern are the communitarian nature of agrarians in the livestock sector, aerogenous spread of the virus and attendant cytocidal effect in permissive cells following activation of pathogen recognition receptors, replication cycles, virulent mutations, seasonal spike in infection rates, flurry of reinfections and excess mortalities that can affect animal welfare and food security. As the capacity to either resist or be susceptible to infection is influenced by numerous factors, identifying coronavirus-associated variants and correlating exposure dynamics with viral aerosols, spirometry indices, comorbidities, susceptible blood types, cellular miRNA binding sites and multisystem inflammatory syndrome remains a challenge where the lethal zoonotic infections are prevalent in the livestock industry, being the hub of dairy, fur, meat and egg production. This entry provides insights into the complexity of the disease burden and recommends precision smart-farming models for upscaling biosecurity measures and adoption of digitalised technologies (robotic drones) powered by multiparametric sensors and radio modem systems for real-time tracking of infectious strains in the agro-environment and managing the transition into the new-normal realities in the livestock industry.
  • 751
  • 22 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Determination of Leaf Inclination Angle through Remote Sensing
The leaf inclination angle (LIA), defined as the leaf or needle inclination angle to the horizontal plane, is vital in radiative transfer, precipitation interception, evapotranspiration, photosynthesis, and hydrological processes. The remote sensing methods to estimate LIA are mainly based on the empirical, radiative transfer model, and gap fraction methods. More advanced inversion strategies and validation studies are necessary to improve the robustness of LIA remote sensing estimation.
  • 748
  • 10 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Tilting Mapping Function
Tilting Mapping Function (TMF) is a tropospheric mapping function to scale the slant tropospheric delays from various elevation and azimuth angles to the zenith direction. Based on the theory of tilting troposphere, TMF can represent the neutral atmosphere's asymmetry more accurately than traditional continued fraction mapping functions.
  • 741
  • 24 Nov 2021
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