Studying a Moving Target: Tracking Cryoconite Holes on Canada Glacier Overview Researchers from University of Colorado and Portland State University are using cryoconite holes on Canada Glacier, located in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, to study microbial communities in their natural environment. Cryoconite holes start as small, dirt-filled depressions on the glacier surface that melt into the ice, … Continued
Unoccupied aerial systems (UAS) show promise for accurately surveying penguin populations in Antarctica. Two UNAVCO-supported UAS surveys of Adélie penguins this season (2018-19) will lend insight into penguin nesting habits. The first took place in early December 2018 with a key goal of counting the nesting adults. The second was timed with the chick counts … Continued
Overview Slumgullion landslide, in southwest Colorado near Lake City, is an ideal outdoor laboratory for comparing a variety of techniques used to measure slope displacements and understand landslide kinematics. The “slow” landslide is nearly constantly active, with surface displacements of several centimeters per day measured on some areas of the slide surface. The goal of … Continued
Subduction Below Extreme Sedimentation: Multidisciplinary Transect from the Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta to the IndoBurma Backarc Overview UNAVCO has been supporting NSF-funded GPS observations in the Ganges-Brahmaputa Delta of Bangladesh since 2003. GPS position estimates collected from the deployed instruments have provided evidence that there is 13-17 mm shortening across this region per year. Initially, it was … Continued
Project Overview The Sierra Negra volcano on Isabella Island in the Galápagos Archipelago erupted spectacularly in 2005 with lava fountains reaching more than 200 meters high, and a gas/ash plume reaching 15 km altitude. Various types of data collected before, during and after that eruption gave earth scientists a better understanding of volcanic processes, some … Continued
Upgrade to a Global Network: Maintaining the NASA GGN Overview UNAVCO, in collaboration with the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), is responsible for the operations and maintenance of the 57 permanent GNSS stations that make up a large portion of the NASA Global GNSS Network (GGN) (Figure 1). The GGN is NASA’s contribution to the … Continued
Project Overview From February 12th through 16th, UNAVCO’s Dylan Schmeelk and John Galetzka joined UC Santa Cruz professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences Noah Finnegan (PI) and his graduate students Alex Nereson and Colleen Murphy in Oak Ridge in the mountains just east of Milpitas, CA to upgrade continuous GPS (cGPS) monitoring of the slow … Continued
Project Overview Over two weeks in April 2018, PhD student Gorki Ruiz from The Pennsylvania State University (PSU), Omar Espinoza (Sub-Director General), Javier Cornejo (Departamento de Geodesia) and Demetrio Garcia (Departmento de Cartografia) from Instituto Geográfico Nacional “Tommy Guardia” (IGNTG) / Autoridad Nacional de Administración de Tierras (ANATI), and Dylan Schmeelk from UNAVCO traveled throughout … Continued
Overview The NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) operates a global network of over 60 permanent GNSS stations called the Global Geodetic Network (GGN). UNAVCO offers support to the GGN by providing data flow monitoring, troubleshooting, station installation and maintenance, and engineering services to help improve the capabilities and performance of station infrastructure. In March of … Continued
Overview NASA’s Space Geodesy Project (SGP) was initiated in order to develop and maintain a global network of next-generation space geodetic observing instruments. Core sites around the globe will use three or four of the primary space-geodetic techniques: Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI), Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR), Doppler Orbitography by Radiopositioning Integrated on Satellite (DORIS), … Continued