Skevi Perdikou

The ANDROID Case Study; Venice and its Territory: Identification of Hazards and Impact of Multi-hazard Scenarios

Abstract The objective of the paper is to review already published scientific papers and other relevant documents to identify hazards, their intensities and probability of occurrence in the Venice territory. In order to achieve the objective, the authors have selected relevant research papers and state of the art documents. Since the Venice and its territory are prone to various hazards, multi-hazard scenarios have been taken into consideration. Hazard impacts are the following: earthquake, tsunami and meteotsunami, flooding/“acqua alta”, subsidence, coastal erosion, salt wedge intrusion, pollution. The paper classifies potential impacts and recognises possible combinations of hazards that may occur in case study territory. A multi-hazard scenarios analysis considers impacts which, either occurring at the same time or shortly following each other, are dependent from one another or because they are caused by the same triggering event or hazard, or merely threatening the same elements at risk (vulnerable or exposed elements) without chronological coincidence (EU, 2010). The research presented in the paper serves as a support for cross-border multi-hazard assessment in other North-Eastern Adriatic Sea areas.

Monitoring air pollution in the vicinity of cultural heritage sites in Cyprus using remote sensing techniques

Cultural Heritage Sites are in danger of being destroyed due to several factors, such as earthquakes, uncontrolled urbanization and air pollution. The latest, whether it is from industrial, transport or domestic sources, can cause significant degradation and corrosion of cultural monuments. The use of satellite images for monitoring air pollution in different areas has received considerable attention and several related techniques have already been developed. In this study, such techniques are extended to examine air pollution monitoring in areas located in the vicinity of cultural heritage sites in Cyprus. Sun-photometers and Lidar have been used to support the results. The authors incorporate also 3D documentation using a laser scanner for monitoring changes over time. The available technologies and methodologies for digital recording of heritage sites and objects are really promising and the whole heritage community is trying to adopt these approaches for quick, effective, detailed and straightforward 3D reproduction.

Smart monitoring of water quality in Asprokremmos Dam in Paphos, Cyprus using satellite remote sensing and wireless sensor platform

The use of satellite remote sensing for water quality monitoring in inland waters has substantial advantages over the insitu sampling method since it provides the ability for overall area coverage and also for study and supervision of isolated locations. The development of algorithms for water quality monitoring using satellite data and surface measurements can be widely found in literature. Such algorithms require validation and one of the major problems faced during these attempts was the need for continuous surface measurements requiring numerous in-situ samplings that imply also very high costs due to the need of increased human labour. The development of an automatic and autonomous sensor system able to be remotely controlled, will cover this gap and will allow the real time combined analysis of satellite and surface data for the continuous monitoring of water quality in dams as well as the overall water resources management. Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) can provide continuous measurements of parameters taken from the field by deploying a lot of wireless sensors to cover a specific geographical area. An innovative, energy-autonomous floating sensor platform (buoy) transferring data via wireless network to a remote central database has been developed for this study which can be applied on all dams in Cyprus. Indeed this project describes the results obtained by an existing running campaign in which in-situ spectroradiometric (GER1500 field spectroradiometer) measurements, water sampling measurements (turbidity), sensor measurements (turbidity) and Landsat TM/ETM+ data have been acquired at the Asprokremmos Dam in Paphos (Cyprus). By applying several regression analyses between reflectance against turbidity for all the spectral bands that correspond to Landsat TM/ETM+ 1-2-3-4, the highest correlation was found for TM band 3 (R2=0.83).

The Current Landscape of Disaster Resilience Education in Europe

Abstract Natural disaster events are continuously increasing in number and severity in recent years. In 2010, 263 million people were affected by disasters – 110 million more than in 2004, the year of the Asian tsunami. There is a need for citizens as well as public administrators to be educated in disaster resilience issues for better prevention, mitigation, preparedness and recovery from such events. Education in disaster resilience is of great importance for administrators forming policies and planning disaster response, managing post disaster actions and performing risk and vulnerability assessments. This paper presents the results from a study aimed to explore, analyse, compare and describe disaster resilience related higher education programmes in Europe in order to establish the existing capacity among European Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) to address the threats posed by hazards of natural and human origin. Results showed that there has been growth in disaster resilience higher education programmes in recent years, particularly at masters level, but there remains great potential for many more.

Variations of spectral signature profiles of wet and dry targets for supporting the detection of water-leakages using satellite data

Satellite data can be used as a valuable tool for the detection of water pipeline leakages in semiarid areas. However the use of multi-temporal satellite images for this purpose can be problematic since reflectance values may change due to phenological changes of plants, radiometric errors during the pre-processing of satellite data, etc. It is therefore important to establish a spectral signature library with “ground truth data” for different scenarios of water leakages in a control site minimizing other potential errors. For this purpose, the GER 1500 spectroradiometer was used for measuring the reflectance values of three different targets: soil, vegetation and asphalt. The targets were saturated with a specific amount of water and then several spectroradiometric measurements were taken. The narrowband reflectance values were then re-scaled to spectral bands of Landsat 5 TM and spectral signature variations were highlighted for all targets before and after moisture level were increased. Using these data, threshold values were defined in order to be used for multispectral satellite data analysis. Specifically, this data was used for detection of water leakages in pipelines in Cyprus using Landsat 5 TM images,.

Use of satellite derived vegetation indices for the detection of water pipeline leakages in semiarid areas

Remote sensing may be used for quick and cost effective detection and monitoring of water leakages, since traditional field survey methods for detection of water pipeline leakages are costly and time consuming. Vegetation indices are widely used by researchers for many applications. Among them, NDVI, RVI and SAVI are indices that can be used for pipeline leakage detection. In this study, the above vegetation indices were evaluated based on Landsat ETM+ multispectral images in a multi-temporal mode. The evaluation was performed in the semiarid environment in Cyprus, in order to detect the position of points/areas where water leakage occurs and to examine the accuracy of the vegetation indices in detecting such events. In addition, a low altitude system was used to record spectral differences before and after a leakage event. The results showed that there are leakage points that could be detected using satellite images due to the increasing and decreasing of the surrounding vegetation affected by the water leaked of the pipeline. Other characteristics such as the soil type and precipitation were also examined. Finally, the low altitude system highlighted the advantages of using such non contact techniques for monitoring water leakages.

Overview of remote sensing applications for assessing and monitoring natural hazards in Cyprus

This paper highlights the importance of using satellite remote sensing in Cyprus for monitoring and managing natural hazards and public health problems. Satellites are able to quantify physical phenomena associated with earthquakes, water (floods) and fires. Satellite sensors can be utilized by the scientific community for the remote sensing of natural hazards over a number of spatial and temporal scales. Indeed this study investigates the potential of monitoring and managing such natural hazards in Cyprus by providing several case studies in Cyprus as well as the potential of applying such satellite remote sensing techniques for assessing and monitoring natural hazards in Cyprus. The occurrence of natural hazards such as fires, flooding, droughts, earthquakes and atmospheric dust in Cyprus as well as the availability of cloud-free satellite images due to the location of the island makes the use of satellite remote sensing techniques ideal for monitoring natural hazards.

Remote Sensing Applications for Planning Irrigation Management. The Use of SEBAL Methodology for Estimating Crop Evapotranspiration in Cyprus

Abstract Water allocation to crops has always been of great importance in the agricultural process. In this context, and under the current conditions, where Cyprus is facing a severe drought the last five years, the purpose of this study is basically to estimate the needed crop water requirements for supporting irrigation management and monitoring irrigation on a systematic basis for Cyprus using remote sensing techniques. The use of satellite images supported by ground measurements has provided quite accurate results. Intended purpose of this paper is to estimate the Evapotranspiration (ET) of specific crops which is the basis for irrigation scheduling and establish a procedure for monitoring and managing irrigation water over Cyprus, using remotely sensed data from Landsat TM/ ETM+ and a sound methodology used worldwide, the Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL).

Long Term Monitoring of Air Pollution on Monuments and Cultural Heritage Sites in Cyprus Using Satellite Remote Sensing

Although cultural heritage sites are documented and preserved, to date there has been limited monitoring and documentation of how cultural heritage sites are affected by air pollution. This paper aims to introduce a new approach for monitoring air pollution for areas near cultural heritage sites by using satellite remotely sensed data. This approach provides a cost-effective tool for local authorities and government agencies to identify the most polluted cultural heritage sites and make decisions regarding the conservation of these sites. Archived data may be used in order to study long term the impact of air pollution to cultural heritage sites. The study area includes significant open air monuments of Cyprus located in the four main cities of the island. In this paper the Limassol Castle is used as a focused case study. Three years of MODIS satellite data was evaluated and analyzed in order to categorize high risk long-term areas. Ground measurements using sun-photometers, spectro-radiometers and partic...

Classification of geological mapping features using satellite remote sensing and in-situ spectroradiometric measurements over Cyprus

This paper aims at establishing the spectral reflectance signature for a number of geological mapping features and specific rocks over the area of Cyprus. This will enable the investigation for specific geological features through classification using satellite images. The purpose is to provide a useful tool for geologists in observation of surface strata. Methodology followed includes extraction of the spectral reflectance signature of the geological features by using satellite imagery, such as those of Landsat TM/ETM+, ASTER etc. In addition in-situ spectro-radiometric measurements were collected for the same feature locations. The selected sites included mines and quarries, with no vegetation cover and therefore no influence on results. Spectral reflectance for each feature refers to average value of retreated satellite image value and measurement result. An algorithm is finally established, aiming to be used for classification purposes of geological mapping and other applications. This innovated approach will, also, prove by validation the accuracy of each method for the spectral reflectance signature estimation. This additional benefit would conclude recommendation for future satellite sensors navigation and work processes. NIR band was found to be suitable for discriminating betonite, limestone and diabase geological features (as found at quarries and mines).