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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 19 records

Evaluating Flood Forecasting System Performance in Cambodia During the 2019 Flood Season

Every year, Cambodia experiences both flash and prolonged riverine flooding as a result of monsoon rains and typhoons. Floods occur frequently in various parts of the region, and result in significant economic cost. Flood forecasting systems are designed to mitigate economic and social impacts, enabling people to prepare for extreme events. However, in order for forecasts to be used effectively, an assessment of the available forecasting systems is needed. In addition, following the onset of flooding, satellite imagery is used to generate flood maps to aid in response efforts. This study demonstrates the performance of regional and global flood forecasting systems over the 2019 flood season. To do this, we assess the flood forecast accuracy at different forecast lead times through a series of forecast verification metrics at gauge locations in Cambodia. We then compare the flood forecast performance to Sentinel 1 flood maps produced by the Hydrological Remote Sensing Analysis of Floods (HYDRAFloods) tool currently being co-developed by SERVIR-Mekong in collaboration with the Myanmar Department of Disaster Management. This assessment of the flood forecasting systems’ performance and comparison to generated flood maps helps provide context to forecasters and disaster managers as they make improvements to their models. Additionally, these results provide support to forecast users as they evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of different systems for taking action.

Nauman, Claire M.↗

Evaluating Flood Forecasting System Performance in Cambodia

Every year, Cambodia experiences flooding as a result of monsoon rains and typhoons. Flood forecasting systems are designed to enable people to mitigate economic and social impacts from these events. However, in order for forecasts to be used effectively, an assessment of their accuracy is needed. This study demonstrates the performance of regional and global flood forecasting systems over the 2019 flood season. To do this, we assess the flood forecast accuracy at different forecast lead times and gauge locations in Cambodia. We then compare the flood forecast performance to satellite-based flood maps produced by the Hydrological Remote Sensing Analysis of Floods (HYDRAFloods) tool currently being co-developed by SERVIR-Mekong in collaboration with the Myanmar Department of Disaster Management. This assessment of the flood forecasting systems’ performance and comparison to flood extents helps (1) provide valuable information to forecasters and disaster managers as they make improvements to their models, and (2) provides support to forecast users as they evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of different systems for taking action.

Nauman, Claire↗

Analysis of Radar Images of Angkor, Cambodia

During the 1996 AIRSAR Pacific Rim Deployment, data were collected over Angkor in Cambodia. The temples of Angkor date the succession of cities to the 9th-13th century AD, but little is known of its prehistoric habitation. A related area of archaeological debate has been the origin, spiritual meaning and use of the hydraulic constructions in the urban zone. The high resolution, multi-channel capability of AIRSAR, together with the unprecedentedly accurate topography provided by TOPSAR, offer identification and delineation of these features. Examples include previously unrecorded circular earthworks around circular village sites, detection of unrecorded earthwork dykes, reservoirs and canal features, and of temple sites located some distance from the main temple complex at Angkor.

Freeman, Anthony↗

Evaluating near-real time satellite flood mapping for humanitarian early action: a case study on the 2020 Cambodia floods

Forecast-based early action is an increasingly popular framework advocating for the use of numerical weather prediction to set objective, automatic conditions for roll-out of proactive flood risk reduction efforts. Within this field, there is a relatively young discourse regarding the potential value of satellite Earth observations and the optimal role that remote sensing should play in improving the efficacy and value of forecast-based early action for flood management. The Hydrological Remote Sensing Analysis for Floods tool (HYDRAFloods) was developed to provide automated, near real-time satellite-based flood extent maps to local governments, disaster managers, and humanitarian organizations. This research evaluates (a.) whether HYDRAFloods satisfactorily met needs identified by humanitarian partners during the October 2020 floods in Cambodia, and (b.) whether the novel additions of near real-time data and flood extent mapping resulted in demonstrable advantages over previous forecast-based flood early action systems as identified in the literature. From these results, the authors identify the technological and logistical limitations of the HYDRAFloods methodology and synthesize actionable recommendations for Earth observations practitioners seeking to better support forecast-based early action.

floods↗

A Regional Map of Mangrove Extent for Myanmar, Thailand, and Cambodia Shows Losses of 44% By 1996

Southeast Asia is home to some of the planet’s most carbon-dense and biodiverse mangrove ecosystems. There is still much uncertainty with regards to the timing and magnitude of changes in mangrove cover over the past 50 years. While there are several regional to global maps of mangrove extent in Southeast Asia over the past two decades, data prior to the mid-1990s is limited due to the scarcity of Earth Observation data of sufficient quality and the historical limitations to publicly available EO. We present a classification of mangrove extent using Landsat 1-2 MSS Tier 2 data from 1972-1977 for three Southeast Asian countries: Myanmar, Thailand, and Cambodia. Mangrove extent land cover maps were generated using a Random Forest machine learning algorithm that effectively mapped a total of 15,420.51 km2. Accuracy assessments indicated that the classification for the mangrove and non-mangrove class had a producer’s accuracy of 79.63 % and 98.24 %a user’s accuracy of 89.58 % and 96.21 %, and an overall accuracy of 95.26 % . We found a decline of 6,830 km2 between the 1970’s and 2020, showing that44.29% of the mangrove area in these countries has been lost in the past 48 years. Most of this loss occurred between the 1970’s and 1996; rates of deforestation declined dramatically after 1996. This study also urges that these results be considered within the context of the local need for these coastal resources that helped them endure the political and financial challenges of their coastal homes.

Priscilla Baltezar↗

Analysis of Radar Images of Angkor, Cambodia

This paper will focus on our analysis of the imaging radar data in support of archaeological studies and subsequent ground verification of some of the features visible in the radar data.

AirSAR↗

Assessment of the Biomass Productivity Decline in the Lower Mekong Basin

This study aimed to delineate the geographic hotspots of negative trends in biomass productivity in the Lower Mekong Basin countries (Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand) and identify correlated regional environmental and anthropogenic factors. A long-term time-series (1982–2015) of Normalized Difference Vegetation Index at a resolution of approximately 9.16 km x 9.16 km was used to specify the areas with significant decline or increase in productivity. The relationships between vegetation changes and land attributes, such as climate, population density, soil/terrain conditions, and land-cover types, were examined. Rainfall time-series maps were used to identify areas that might have been affected by land degradation from those correlated with rainfall. Most of the detected potentially degraded areas were found in Cambodia, the Northwest and the Highland of Vietnam, the Northern Mountains of Thailand and Laos, and the mountainous border between Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia. About 15% of the total land area of these four countries experienced a reduction in biomass productivity during the 34-year study period. The map of hotspots of changes in productivity can be used to direct further studies, including those at finer spatial resolution that may support policy makers and researchers in targeting the strategies for combating land degradation.

land degradation↗

Land Cover Change Analysis and Spatial Variations in Southeast Asian Nations: Insights on Spatial Scale Dynamics

Land cover type is a fundamental aspect of studies using remote sensing for environmental analysis such as monitoring deforestation, quantifying wildland fire emissions, and more. There are many land cover products available for varying time periods and spatial resolutions, each with different land cover class definitions and number of land cover classes. These differences yield inherent variation in land cover estimates. In this study, we explore the spatial and areal variation between two major datasets for their commonly available time of 2018 to 2022 (MODIS 500m Land Cover and Esri Sentinel-2 10m land cover) in the continental Southeast Asia countries of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. To enable comparison, we resampled the datasets and reclassified the land cover classes to a common scheme. Major disagreement was detected between Esri and MODIS, especially for the wetlands/flooded vegetation class in which only 3.6% of pixels were in agreement. In addition to quantifying variation between the datasets, we quantify land cover change at the decadal scale of 2001, 2011, and 2021 for each country and identified province-level hotspots of land cover change. Cambodia experienced the highest rate of land cover change with 67.8% of total land area changed, followed by Vietnam (58.6%), Laos (50.2%), Myanmar (46.9%), and Thailand (46.3%). The highest rate of land cover change was detected in Odtar Mean Chey, Cambodia, which had large swaths of forest area cleared for agricultural production, river damming, and more. Ultimately, many areas in the region experienced forest clearing for crop production (i.e. rice) which appeared to be classified as wetland in the MODIS product, and crop in the Esri product. Myanmar was the only country which did not experience net decline in forest area over the 2001 to 2021 time period.

Land Cover Change↗

Report on the international Cambodian crater expedition, 1992

It has been proposed that Tonle Sap, a lake in Cambodia, 100 km long and 30 km wide, marks the location of an elongate basin formed by the oblique impact of a comet or asteroid. The impact is considered to have produced melted ejecta found now as tektites over much of southeast Asia and Australia. The location of the lake, its approximate age, its size, and the orientation of its long axis (toward Australia) are consistent with this hypothesis. Our scientific objectives were to find impact or shock metamorphosed rocks unambiguously related to the Tonle Sap basin, to collect samples of rocks that may represent those melted to produce Australasian tektites, and to learn as much as possible about Cambodian geology. Using 1:200,000-scale geologic maps with fairly detailed descriptions of the rock units, we selected a number of acceptable 'phnoms' (hills that rise abruptly out of the surrounding plain) that may contain rocks affected by the postulated Tonle Sap impact. A map of central Cambodia is shown, and the locations of sites where samples were collected are indicated. A list of those sites, together with a description of the rocks reported to be present at each site, is given. No obviously shock-metamorphosed or suevite-like rocks were observed. Recent alluvium surrounding Tonle Sap is judged to be lake sediment deposited when the lake surface was at a higher elevation.

Hartung, J.↗

Flood Mapping in the Lower Mekong River Basin Using Daily MODIS Observations

In flat homogenous terrain such as in Cambodia and Vietnam, the monsoon season brings significant and consistent flooding between May and November. To monitor flooding in the Lower Mekong region, the near real-time NASA Flood Extent Product (NASA-FEP) was developed using seasonal normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) differences from the 250 m resolution Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor compared to daily observations. The use of a percentage change interval classification relating to various stages of flooding reduces might be confusing to viewers or potential users, and therefore reducing the product usage. To increase the product usability through simplification, the classification intervals were compared with other commonly used change detection schemes to identify the change classification scheme that best delineates flooded areas. The percentage change method used in the NASA-FEP proved to be helpful in delineating flood boundaries compared to other change detection methods. The results of the accuracy assessments indicate that the −75% NDVI change interval can be reclassified to a descriptive 'flood' classification. A binary system was used to simplify the interpretation of the NASA-FEP by removing extraneous information from lower interval change classes.

Cambodia↗

Shuttle Earth Views, 1994

In this third part of a four-part video compilation of Space Shuttle Earth views, various geographical areas are shown, including both land and water masses. The views cover South America, Asia (North Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, China, Malaysia, Thailand, Java, various islands, Burma, Philippines, Taiwan, Guam), New Guinea, Australia, Morocco, Southern Europe (Spain, Portugal, Algeria, Italy, Sicily, Greece, Former Republic of Yugoslavia, Tunisia), and parts of the Middle East (Libya, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Sinai, Cyprus, Lebanon, Iraq), the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and the Mediterranean, Dead, Coral, Tyrrhenian, Adriatic, Ionian, Red, South China, Mindanao, Arafura, Sulu, Java, and China Seas. Each film clip has a heading that names the shuttle and the geographical location of the footage.

Source record↗

Polarization Reversal Over Flooded Regions and Applications to Large-Scale Flood Mapping with Spaceborne Scatterometers

We present the polarization reversal in backscatter over flooded land regions, and demonstrate for the first time the utility of spaceborne Ku-band scatterometer for large-scale flood mapping. Scatterometer data were collected over the globe by the NASA Scatterometer (NSCAT) operated at 14 GHz on the Japanese ADEOS spacecraft from September 1996 to June 1997. During this time span, several severe floods occurred. Over most land surface, vertical polarization backscatter (Sigma(sub upsilon(upsilon)) is larger than horizontal polarization backscatter (sigma(sub hh)). Such polarization characteristics is reversed and sigma(sub upsilon(upsilon)) is smaller than sigma(sub hh) over flooded regions, except under a dense forest canopy. The total backscatter from the flooded landscape consists of direct backscatter and boundary-interaction backscatter. The direct term is contributed by direct backscattering from objects protruding above the water surface, and by backscattering from waves on the water surface. The boundary-interaction term is contributed by the forward scattering from the protruding objects and then reflected from the water surface, and also by the forward scattering from these objects after the water-surface reflection. Over flooded regions, the boundary-interaction term is dominant at large incidence angles and the strong water-surface reflection is much larger for horizontal polarization than the vertical one due to the Brewster effect in transverse-magnetic waves. These scattering mechanisms cause the polarization reversal over flooded regions. An example obtained with the Analytic Wave Theory is used to illustrate the scattering mechanisms leading to the polarization reversal. We then demonstrate the utility of spaceborne Ku-band scatterometer for large-scale flood mapping. We process NSCAT data to obtain the polarization ratio sigma(sub hh)/sigma(sub upsilon(upsilon)) with colocated data at incidence angles larger than 40 deg. The results over Asian summer monsoon regions in September-October 1996 indicate flooded areas in many countries such as Bangladesh, India, Lao, Vietnam, Cambodia, and China. Reports documented by the United Nation Department of Humanitarian Affairs (now called UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) show loss of many lives and severe flood related damages which affected many million people in the corresponding flooded areas. We also map the NSCAT polarization ratio over the same regions in the "dry season" in January 1997 as a reference to confirm our results. Furthermore, we obtain concurrent ocean wind fields also derived from NSCAT data, and Asia topographic data (USGS GTOPO30) to investigate the flooded area. The results show that winds during summer monsoon season blowing inland, which perplex flood problems. Overlaying the topographic map over NSCAT results reveals an excellent correspondence between the confinement of flooded area within the relevant topographic features, which very well illustrates the value of topographic wetness index. Finally, we discuss the applications of future spaceborne scatterometers, including QuikSCAT and Seawinds, for flood mapping over the globe.

Nghiem, Son V.↗

Assessing Malaria Risks in Greater Mekong Subregion based on Environmental Parameters

At 4,200 km, the Mekong River is the tenth longest river in the world. It directly and indirectly influences the lives of hundreds of millions of inhabitants in its basin. The riparian countries - Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, and a small part of China - form the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). This geographical region has the misfortune of being the world's epicenter of falciparum malaria, which is the most severe form of malaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum. Depending on the country, approximately 50 to 90% of all malaria cases are due to this species. In the Malaria Modeling and Surveillance Project, we have been developing techniques to enhance public health s decision capability for malaria risk assessments and controls. The main objectives are: 1) identifying the potential breeding sites for major vector species; 2) implementing a malaria transmission model to identify the key factors that sustain or intensify malaria transmission; and 3) implementing a risk algorithm to predict the occurrence of malaria and its transmission intensity. The potential benefits are: 1) increased warning time for public health organizations to respond to malaria outbreaks; 2) optimized utilization of pesticide and chemoprophylaxis; 3) reduced likelihood of pesticide and drug resistance; and 4) reduced damage to environment. Environmental parameters important to malaria transmission include temperature, relative humidity, precipitation, and vegetation conditions. The NASA Earth science data sets that have been used for malaria surveillance and risk assessment include AVHRR Pathfinder, TRMM, MODIS, NSIPP, and SIESIP. Hindcastings based on these environmental parameters have shown good agreement to epidemiological records. Socioeconomic factors that may influence malaria transmissions will also be incorporated into the predictive models.

Kiang, Richard↗

Malaria Modeling and Surveillance for the Greater Mekong Subregion

At 4,200 km, the Mekong River is the tenth longest river in the world. It directly and indirectly influences the lives of hundreds of millions of inhabitants in its basin. The riparian countries - Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, and a small part of China - form the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). This geographical region has the misfortune of being the world's epicenter of falciparum malaria, which is the most severe form of malaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum. Depending on the country, approximately 50 to 90% of all malaria cases are due to this species. In the Malaria Modeling and Surveillance Project, we have been developing techniques to enhance public health's decision capability for malaria risk assessments and controls. The main objectives are: 1) Identifying the potential breeding sites for major vector species; 2) Implementing a malaria transmission model to identify the key factors that sustain or intensify malaria transmission; and 3) Implementing a risk algorithm to predict the occurrence of malaria and its transmission intensity. The potential benefits are: 1) Increased warning time for public health organizations to respond to malaria outbreaks; 2) Optimized utilization of pesticide and chemoprophylaxis; 3) Reduced likelihood of pesticide and drug resistance; and 4) Reduced damage to environment. Environmental parameters important to malaria transmission include temperature, relative humidity, precipitation, and vegetation conditions. These parameters are extracted from NASA Earth science data sets. Hindcastings based on these environmental parameters have shown good agreement to epidemiological records.

Kiang, Richard↗

Mapping Angkor with AIRSAR/TOPSR Data

During last year's AIRSAR Pacific Rim Deployment, data were collected over Angkor in Cambodia. The temples of Angkor date the city to the 9th-13th century AD, but little is known of its prehistoric habitation.

floodplain dams canals barays mound sites SAR obse↗

NASA Remote Sensing Applications for Archaeology and Cultural Resources Management

NASA's Earth Science Mission Directorate recently completed the deployment of the Earth Observation System (EOS) which is a coordinated series of polar-orbiting and low inclination satellites for long-term global observations of the land surface, biosphere, solid Earth, atmosphere, and oceans. One of the many applications derived from EOS is the advancement of archaeological research and applications. Using satellites, manned and unmanned airborne platform, NASA scientists and their partners have conducted archaeological research using both active and passive sensors. The NASA Stennis Space Center (SSC) located in south Mississippi, near New Orleans, has been a leader in space archaeology since the mid-1970s. Remote sensing is useful in a wide range of archaeological research applications from landscape classification and predictive modeling to site discovery and mapping. Remote sensing technology and image analysis are currently undergoing a profound shift in emphasis from broad classification to detection, identification and condition of specific materials, both organic and inorganic. In the last few years, remote sensing platforms have grown increasingly capable and sophisticated. Sensors currently in use, including commercial instruments, offer significantly improved spatial and spectral resolutions. Paired with new techniques of image analysis, this technology provides for the direct detection of archaeological sites. As in all archaeological research, the application of remote sensing to archaeology requires a priori development of specific research designs and objectives. Initially targeted at broad archaeological issues, NASA space archaeology has progressed toward developing practical applications for cultural resources management (CRM). These efforts culminated with the Biloxi Workshop held by NASA and the University of Mississippi in 2002. The workshop and resulting publication specifically address the requirements of cultural resource managers through the use of remote sensing. In 2007, NASA awarded six competitively chosen projects in Space Archaeology through an open solicitation whose purpose, among several, was to addresses the potential benefits to modern society that can be derived through a better understanding of how past cultures succeeded or failed to adapt to local, regional, and global change. A further objective of NASA's space archaeology is the protection and preservation of cultural heritage sites while planning for the sustainable development of cultural resources. NASA s archaeological approach through remote sensing builds on traditional methods of aerial archaeology (i.e. crop marks) and utilizes advanced technologies for collecting and analyzing archaeological data from digital imagery. NASA s archaeological research and application projects using remote sensing have been conducted throughout the world. In North America, NASA has imaged prehistoric mound sites in Mississippi; prehistoric shell middens in Louisiana, Puebloan sites in New Mexico and more recently the sites associated with the Lewis and Clark Corps of Discovery Expedition (1804-1806). In Central America, NASA archaeologists have researched Mayan sites throughout the region, including the Yucatan and Costa Rica, as well as Olmec localities in Veracruz. Other data has been collected over Angkor, Cambodia, Giza in Egypt, the lost city of Ubar on the Arabian Peninsula.

Giardino, Marco J.↗