Using eyes in the sky to locate seals in a rapidly changing Arctic (VIDEO)
Caption
Researchers from the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea research (NIOZ), Wageningen University & Research (WUR) and Aeria visited the waters around Svalbard, Norway, to make high resolution drone images of different species of seals. After comparing these drone images with satellite images, algorithms can be developed to automate the detection of seals in satellite images. To the researchers’ surprise, these satellite images not only revealed the location of breathing holes, but also tracks of polar bears. These images from space are an extremely valuable conservation tool for Arctic marine mammals, who are highly dependent on sea ice, which is rapidly diminishing due to global warming. Read more: https://www.nioz.nl/en/news/using-eyes-in-the-sky-to-locate-seals-in-a-rapidly-changing-arctic
Credit
Movie made by Frouke Fey, drone images by Aeria / Eelke Folmer
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