A study of the early detection of insect infestations and density/distribution of host plants

There are no author-identified significant results in this report

The use of Skylab data to study the early detection of insect infestations and density and distribution of host plants

The detection of insect infestations and the density and distribution of host plants were studied using Skylab data, aerial photography and ground truth simultaneously. Additional ground truth and aerial photography were acquired between Skylab passes. Three test areas were selected: area 1, of high density citrus, was located northwest of Mission, Texas; area 2, 20 miles north of Weslaco, Texas, irrigated pastures and brush-covered land; area 3 covered the entire Lower Rio Grande Valley and adjacent areas of Mexico. A color composite picture of S-190A data showed patterns of vegetation on both sides of the Rio Grande River clearly delineating the possible avenues of entry of pest insects from Mexico into the United States or from the United States into Mexico. Vegetation that could be identified with conventional color and color IR film included: citrus, brush, sugarcane, alfalfa, irrigated and unimproved pastures

A study of the early detection of insect infestations and density/distribution of host plants

The author has identified the following significant results. With comparative observations of film types and seasonal influences on reflectance characteristics, many crop varieties can be identified. This study shows that citrus, sugar cane, brush, some winter vegetables, and grain crops could be identified. Vegetative patterns in border areas can be detected. This information can be useful in detecting avenues of entry of pest species and areas of stress that require vigilance in stopping the spread of destructive species. Influence of some environmental factors on crops that may be confused with pest injury, or related factors, can be detected and identified with Skylab data (S-190B)

A study of the early detection of insect infestations and density/distribution of host plants

There are no author-identified significant results in this report

A study of the early detection of insect infestations and density/distribution of host plants

There are no author-identified significant results in this report

A study of early detection of insect infestations and density/distribution of host plants

There are no author-identified significant results in this report

A study of the early detection of insect infestations and density/distribution of host plants

There are no author-identified significant results in this report

Online conferences – Towards a new (virtual) reality

The recent article: Nature 579, 327–328 (2020), ending with the phrase: “You can’t just suddenly make a conference be online.”, has motivated us to write about the practicalities and philosophy of running online events, drawing on our extensive experience running an annual online computational chemistry conference. Our goals for this online conference series have always been: (1) Availability; (2) Community building and (3) Supporting young scientists. In this article, we highlight the motivations behind our initiative, how this has influenced the organisation of our online meeting, and discuss the benefits as well as the drawbacks of virtual meetings. Virtual conferences may not fully replace in-person meetings, but they are rapidly becoming an accepted alternative format. We discuss the hybrid online/in-person conference format as a future possibility that may offer an opportunity to reduce the environmental impact and accessibility barriers associate with in-person meetings without comprising networking and community-building opportunities