BAE Seminar Series: Beyond Remote Sensing: UAS Innovations for Direct Sensing and Sampling in Agriculture

October 1, 2024 3:00PM - 4:00PM

https://msu.zoom.us/j/94818222372


Dr. Sierra Young

Utah Water Research Laboratory and Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, Utah State University

 

Tuesday, October 1, 2024 at 3 PM EST

Zoom:  https://msu.zoom.us/j/94818222372

Abstract: Traditionally, unoccupied aerial systems (UAS) have been used primarily for remote sensing, capturing data passively from above. While useful, recent developments in sensing, instrumentation, and controls have expanded their capabilities to physically interact with the environment, enabling direct sampling and in-situ measurements. In this seminar, I will present advances in the integration of UAS with innovative sensing and sampling technologies for environmental and agricultural monitoring. The focus will be on two key projects where UAS are employed to sense remote environments, expanding the capabilities of traditional monitoring approaches. The first project investigates using UAS for real-time water quality and velocity assessments in near-shore aquaculture leases, enabling high-resolution data collection through targeted sampling. The second project explores the application of UAS in terrestrial environments, where these systems facilitate in-situ soil moisture monitoring, which is critical for agricultural landscapes. By combining aerial mobility with advanced sensors, these projects demonstrate new methodologies for capturing critical data.

Bio: Dr. Sierra Young is an Assistant Professor in the Utah Water Research Laboratory and Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at Utah State University. Broadly speaking, her research focuses on developing field robotics, automation, and visual sensing systems for environmental and agricultural applications. Dr. Young recently received an NSF CAREER award for her work using hyperspectral imaging to monitor foliar dust on vegetation and was previously invited to participate and speak in the 2021 National Academy of Engineering US Frontiers of Engineering Symposium for her work on robotics and precision agriculture. Before joining Utah State, she was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at North Carolina State University. Dr. Young received her Ph.D. in Civil Engineering as a Department of Defense NDSEG Fellow from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2018.