Kona Science Cafe: Linking soil nutrients with crop health using UAV sensing

When: Wed. Jan. 25, 2017, 5 p.m.
Where: NELHA Gateway Center
Presenters: MIT Civil & Environmental Engineering students

A team of eleven undergraduates from MIT’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering will present results from two studies performed while visiting the island of Hawaii as part of a winter-term field class, “Travelling Research Environmental eXperiences” (TREX). This year the students are focused on two major projects:

1. examining and linking soil nutrient status with plant health, aided by the use of remote sensing data gathered with an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), and
2. the measurements of gaseous sulfur dioxide (SO2), a major component of vog, using a network of home-built low-cost portable sensors.

The students will present their measurements and analysis of crop nutrients, remote sensing data, and sulfur dioxide, and discuss their environmental implications.

This year’s trip is led by Ben Kocar, a soil and water biogeochemist, and also instructed by atmospheric chemists Jesse Kroll and Colette Heald; all are in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at MIT.

After the presentation, we will have pupus, drinks, and conversation. We are informal and it is potluck, so please bring a pupu and non-alcoholic beverage to share. Reusable plates and cups are encouraged, as is taking home your own trash.

Agenda:
5:00-5:15 p.m. Gather and Networking
5:15-6:15 p.m. Presentation and Q&A
6:15-7:30 p.m. More Networking, pupus