The FEWS Project

The Flood Early Warning System Project

Aim:

To design a Flood Early Warning System for the surbub and surrounding informal settlements of Greenhaven,South Africa.

Hypothesis:

Communities can be alerted in realtime about natural disasters in such a way that lives and property can be saved.

Apparatus:

1. Flood gauges(waterlevel)
2. Weather Radar Instruments(Rainfall)
3. Computers
4. Topography maps

M ethod:

1. Get realtime data from DWAF flood gauges in the Groot Brak River
2. Monitor the Groot Brak River waterlevel hourly
3. Get the WeatherSA weather radar instruments data in realtime
   1. Monitor the rainfall over the Greenhaven area and nearby river systems leading to the Groot Brak River.
4. Contrast read in values to threshold values to determine exceptions
   1. If exceptions are recorded issue alerts through a broadcast node
   2. Broadcast nodes consists of radio,e-mail,cellphone(SMS) alerts etc.
5. Alert rescue officials directly
6. Constantly monitor rainfall and waterlevel

Assumptions:

1. We can access DWAF flood gauges information in realtime
2. We can access weather SA weather radar instruments in realtime
3. We can be able to use the data from flood gauges and weather radar instruments to constantly monitor rainfall and waterlevels in the Groot Brak River area

Requirements:

1. The FEWS must be accurate in predictions
2. The FEWS must be run on an uninterruptable power service(UPS)
3. The FEWS must be portable to be built on any area within South Africa and Internationally
4. The FEWS must have a call center functionality

Conclusion:

• The FEWS must not only alert and warn about floods but must also be able to let people know if they have not built on flood prone areas, and also to let people know what structures in the area can cause induced flooding.
• The call center functionality will allow people to dial-in and be informed about floods.

Download full Scope & Vision document here (-:  scopevision.pdf

For further information e-mail Mkhize F.S at fmkhize@csir.co.za

Casual’Fuse Projects’  Update

Competency with the Climate Changes

CasualAstronomy-Learning from other Planets

The basic design concept behind the ‘Fuse’ is early detection and preparation. The tools already exist but it would be a nice Individual Project to simulate the reports necessary to counter-act natural disasters.

Observing Mars from earth is quite a fascinating concept, but do you ever wonder how Earth would look from that distance? Consider the Mars Canals? Why do these exist?

Floods are just a normal concept.They are not new, but technology is ever changing and what can be done with ICT, is unlimited.Tsunamis are just a concept, as “Tidal Waves”  only with a different name.

Tsunamis can be detected just the same way as floods, from their point of origin to their destination with such accuracy as arrival-time from point of origin.What technologies can aid such a ‘Fuse’?

The ‘Fuse’ suggests a concept, its a strategic concept in Earth Observation, that I would refer to as “Detection is better than cure!”  Casual Astronomy

The Sensor Web Agent Platform(SWAP)

SWAP is a sensor web architecture that makes use of Web services and Multi-Agent systems.It serves as a framework for builinding sensor web applications over the internet.

The SWAP framework is a three-tier architecture framework consisting of three layers namely:

1. Sensor Layer
2. Knowledge Layer
3. Application Layer

The Sensor Layer

-Consists of sensor agents(small programms) that encapsulate the actual sensors.

-Sensor agents pass thier information to the workflow agents in the Knowledge layer.

-Sensor agents hide the implementation of the sensors.

The Knowledge Layer

-Consists of tool,workflow and simulation agents.

-Workflow agents recieve data from sensor agents.

-Tool agents provide feature extraction and image processing functionality.

-Simulation Agents provide projections and analysis of data.

-Data moves from workflow agents to the Application Layer.

Application Layer

-Consits of application agents.They provide various user interfaces for users and various APIs.

Package Management

Packages are group of files which are used by the same program.There are several systems for managing packages in the Linux System.In Gentoo we use portage.

Portage unpacks the packets and installs all the files through the command emerge.

That is, by typing in emerge -<application-package> you can install the package and all that will be required manually is to restart the computer after the installation is complete.

-Taken from Office 142 Discussions

OpenGIS Sensor Web Enablement Architecture

The following openGIS specifications exist:

[1] Observations & Measurements

-encodings for observation made using sensors.

[2]Sensor Model Language(SensorML)

-schema describing the process within sensor processor systems

[3]Tranducer Model Language (TML)

-schema for describing tranducers

[4]Sensor Observation Service(SOS)

-The goal of the the SOS is to provide access to observations from sensors and sensor systems in a standard way.

-an interface by which a client can obtain observations,sensor and platform descriptions.

-is a data store

-similar to a database

-a service providing information about observed data e.g current water level.

[5]Sensor Planning Service(SPS)

-an interface by which a client can determine the feasibility of collecting data from one or more sensors.

[6]Sensor Alert Service(SAS)

-an interface for publishing and subscribing to deliverable alerts from sensors.

-is the central logic

-monitors complex subscription rules

-it subscribes to the SOS which provides observation if subscription condition is fulfilled.

[7]Web Notification Service(WNS)

-an interface by which a client can conduct message interchange with one or more other services.

-dispatches alerts through a user selected channel e.g. SMS or e-mail.

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SOURCES:

1. OpenGIS Sensor Web Enablement Architecture Document (Ref:OGC 06-021r1)
2. Definations by Alexander Walkowski,52 North,Germany

Global Earth Observation System of Systems(GEOSS)

In order to remote sense the Earth we have to build Earth observation stations(systems).Each Earth Observation system(station) is made up of a number of sensors to detect virious aspects about the earth,e.g. volcanoes,tsunamies,winds etc.These phenomenones are then presented to computer screens as images of electromagnetic radiation.Electromagnetic radiation conveys much information about the object(system) targeted.

Moving towards a system of systems
Now suppose that we have two earth observation systems A and B ,one obeservng feld fire activity(A) in an area X and one observing wind speeds and directions (B)on area X.earth obnservation sytems A can convey information about a feld fire such as the location of the fire and the intensity of the fire, while earth observatiomn station B can convey information about the wind currents in area X where the fire is loceted.

Now if the two ouputs from the two earth observation stations can be converged(fussed) we can get an image not only showing the location and intensity of the fire but also modelling the direction and the speed at which it is spreading!This earth observation station that combines the output from the two independent erath observation stations can better alert people about a possible danger before it occures.This is the foundation of the Global Earth Observation System of Systems.

The GEOSS is a systems of systems evolving from and driven by user requirements.

The Focus Of the GEOSS

“The focus of GEOSS is on observations relevent to large parts of the world.Information that has international relevence.The GEOSS thus makes it possible to combine information from currently unconnected sources, in order to obatin a view that is sufficiently comprehensive to meet user needs.”

Structure of the GEOSS

“The GEOSS systems are themnselves often ‘systems of systems’.It will originate from contributing national,intergovemental and non-govemental systems.The GEOSS builds upon current cooperation efforts between existing observing and processing systems,while encouraging and accommodating new components.”

“The GEOSS will be based on existing observing,data processing,data exchange and dissemination systems,while fostering and accommodationg new systems….”

Functions Of The GEOSS

“To provide timely and accurate information,it is necessary to to integrate in situ measurements,airborne and satellite remote sensing, predictive models.”

“One of the initial tasks foe GEOSS will be to establish and maintain an inventory of contributing systems.”

The GEOSS ,more than just a Decision Support System

“GEOSS wil contribute significantly to human health for prevention,early warning and rapid problem-solving by facilitating better data on enviromental factors such as exposure factors like air and water contaminants,pathogens, and ultrviolet radiation;nutritional factors such as price and avilability of food;extreme weather events and noise;and indicators of stress of overpopulation.”

“GEOSS will play an important role in providing data and information relevant to planning,developing and controlling power and pipeline distribution systems,hydropower dam operations,wind power generation commitment,traffic congestion management,city lighting and building heating/cooling,to name just a few.”

“Examples of GEOSS predictive products include outlooks,forecats, and predictions generated by global and regional Erathsytesm models and thier associated data aaimilation sytems. “

“The GEOSS will work with opertational agencies, space agencies and international research programmes to develop coordinated systems of realanalysis and processing of Erath Observation data in order to ensure the provision of historical data sets.”

The GEOSS’ support for ‘Open Source’

“The GEOSS follows the policy that software components must haveopen-standard-based interfaces.”

“The GEOSS encourages the development and verification of open source software”

“The GEOSS will inform indivisulas or stakeholders to enable better decision making.“

Stakeholders in the GEOSS

1. user communities
2. managers
3. policy makers
4. scientific researchers
5. enginneers
6. civil societey
7. govemental & no-govemental organizations
8. international bodies

User friendlyness

“The GEOSS will encourage the develpment of appropiate tools and manuals for users and the provision of help desks in order to make the GEOSS ‘user friendly’.”

So what exactly is remote sensing?

The acquiring of information about a body e.g. a planet without actualy coming to contact with it.You observe a signal(light) illuminating a body of interest from a remote postion i.e. without coming to contact with the system of the signal(light) source and the body.It is through the signals that bounce off from the body that when detected convey useful information about the that particular object.

Firering or bombarding a body with signals from the shortest wavelength to the longest wavelength at the same angle over a period of time can convey enough information about that object.When the fired signals are sensored and processed we can describe even the finer details about that object.

I see remoste sensing as a bases for research in astronomy.Not only is it economic but instead of just building large telescopes to observe the planets.One can actually determine the surface of distant planets and even better determine the composition of the planet surface.Remote sensing can also be used to search for water,vegetation and even remains of ancient civilizations e.g. roads,caltivation canals etc.

But to better understand the tools we use for remote sensing its crucial that we not only test them but use them for scientific research in our own planet Earth!Hence the concept of Earth Observation.Sensors can be put in long arms above the earth,in airplanes,in space shuttles and even on satellites(Land Observation Satellites) in order to observe the Earth but more on that later.

The big question for now is ….what exactly do we do when we remote sense planet Earth?

(see the paper on the Global Earth Observation System)