2017 field program

Aug 31, 2017

In June 2017 C-CORE conducted a high-tech iceberg data collection program in Bonavista Bay, NL, aimed at developing methods to better survey and monitor these beautiful, often unpredictable, natural phenomena.  The research team, led by remote sensing scientist Dr. Peter McGuire and ice researcher Dr. Rob Briggs, spent two days at sea in the coastal waters off Bonavista where they could get close to many icebergs of various sizes. At about 2000 tonnes, the largest surveyed was almost 300 metres across, 40 metres high and 70 metres deep.  All operations were completed without accident or injury, despite the occasional bout of sea sickness in heavy swell. 

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Water Ecosystems Monitoring using Earth Observation 2.0

Building a better water monitoring system for Canada’s North

Our planet is continually surveilled by an ever-increasing fleet of Earth-observing satellites. Their sensors capture optical and radar imagery and a vast range of other data that can be used to better understand our planet and manage its natural resources. In 2014–2015 C-CORE developed a satellite-based monitoring program for the Northwest Territories’ Slave River and Delta. Water Ecosystems Monitoring using Earth Observation (WEMEO) was designed by C-CORE, in collaboration with the Government of the Northwest Territories and the communities of Fort Smith and Fort Resolution, with support from the Canadian Space Agency, to gather information about the quality and abundance of the water in the Slave River and Delta region.  Now, WEMEO is being improved and expanded to increase information and make it more easily accessible to scientists, communities and decision-makers with questions about water quality and changes to rivers and lakes within the Northwest Territories.

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River Ice Flood Hazard Assessment Project

C-CORE developing innovative Earth observation solutions for disaster management in Canada

With funding support from the Canadian Space Agency’s Earth Observation Application Development Program (EOADP), C-CORE is developing tools to improve decision-making for disaster management and emergency response in areas where rivers freeze and ice jams form.

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Strategic Partnership for Remote Sensing Innovation

C-CORE collaborates with Boeing Phantom Works to develop new satellite ground stations

C-CORE will design and build satellite ground stations for downlinking data from multiple missions (conventional Earth observation (EO) satellites, nanosats, cubesats and other small satellites). The ground stations will be designed for arctic deployment, and the first two will be deployed in Inuvik, Northwest Territories and St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador.

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Airborne Ice Thickness Measurement System Project

Creating an early warning system for offshore facilities and vessels facing encroaching ice and extreme ice features

Supported in part by ACOA’s Atlantic Innovation Fund, C-CORE is leading a five-phase project to develop an Airborne Ice thickness Measurement System (AIMS). Working in collaboration with Provincial Aerospace Ltd., Rutter Inc. and DeltaRadar Ltd., C‑CORE is developing and will commercialize the novel system, which gathers and integrates radar data to provide ice thickness maps over large areas in real time.

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Building Arctic Capacity for Arctic Oil Spill Monitoring and Response

St. John’s, Newfoundland (6 October 2016) – A C-CORE-led project selected under an initiative by Irving Shipbuilding Inc. and the Nunavut Research Institute aims to involve residents of Canada’s Arctic communities in applied research and development to enhance marine safety and improve response to marine incidents.  The Enhanced Capacity for Oil Spill Situational Awareness and Response in Nunavut project will build local capacity for satellite-based oil spill monitoring and in-field spill response.  Wherever possible, Inuit traditional knowledge will be integrated into the methodology.

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