Project Title: Analyzing the Effectiveness of GIS Mapping and Google Earth
BASIS Advisor: Dr. Gleich
Internship Location: International Food Policy Research Institute
Onsite Mentor: Zhe Guo
The need for reliable satellite imagery from programs such as Google Earth Engine (GEE) is becoming increasingly crucial in the field of agriculture. Instead of relying on researcher data found from field observations, GEE utilizes infrared and near-infrared lighting to estimate crop growth and diversity, allowing for predictions to be made regarding the effects of drought on crop yield. Because the data is then used to influence policy decisions that affect millions of people, the data must be gathered as efficiently as possible to preserve the accuracy of studies. At the International Food Policy Research Institute, I will work with data gathered by researchers to compare its efficiency and accuracy with the data gathered through satellites. With further backing towards the authenticity of satellite imagery in agricultural fields, data may be collected more efficiently without fear of inaccuracy.
My Posts
Week 10
May 13, 2022
For this week, I was working on my presentation for my senior project. I focused on finding data that I could present with my final presentation and I should be able to use a majority of my 2015-2018 data from Egypt and South America. I am planning on creating a list of terms that I […]
Week 9
May 06, 2022
With the deadline for final presentations and submissions coming up, I have focused most of my spare time on a powerpoint detailing my work experience. I plan on including my initial calendar and comparing it to my actual timeline to get a sense of how my predicted progress was compared to my actual. For my […]
Week 8
May 03, 2022
My current work right now is split between independent research on how to operate or utilize software that would help with a presentation and work at the internship itself. Luckily, some of the data I am working on in the internship is usable in my final presentation. This way, I can spend more time on […]
Week 7
Apr 22, 2022
I have finished my work on the Egypt crop yield data and have begun working on the South African data set. There is not too much variance in types of crops, consisting mainly of cereal crops. For a presentable, because of the work and use of the South African data, it will most likely be […]
Week 6
Apr 17, 2022
By the end of this week, I hope to have finished the crop yield data in Egypt. My analysis of these crops got pushed back due to trying to learn ArcPy as the coding language in ArcGIS. I plan to start analyzing the data for South Africa if I want to continue on my planned […]
Week 5 Post
Apr 08, 2022
I have recovered from my illness and have gotten plenty of time to learn the GEE and GIS interactions. According to the ArdGIS website, “Google Earth Engine has made it possible for the first time in history to rapidly and accurately process vast amounts of satellite imagery, identifying where and when tree cover change has […]
Week #4
Apr 01, 2022
Before I talk about learning and utilizing ArcGIS, a graphical display software, I will first go over the difference in data collection types. The crop data gathered by the researchers and satellite imagery are both regarding the information of crop yield generated in farms. The difference between the two is that researcher data is directly […]
Senior Blog #3
Mar 25, 2022
For my internship, I am still working with crop yield data in Egypt and have managed to sort through 2 years worth of crop averages. The biggest issue I have faced when trying to analyze these data points is the inconsistency with formatting in the data I have received. If the researcher data has missing […]
Senior Blog #2
Mar 18, 2022
Having previously interned for the International Food Policy Research Institute, I was able to almost immediately start my work. I am currently sorting through crop yields given by researcher data, a form of data collected directly from farmers or land surveyors. The country that I am given is Egypt where their main sources of crop […]
First Post
Mar 16, 2022
The initial week consisted mainly of paperwork and introductions. I was given a work computer with access to many programs that are useful to both my internship and my senior project such as Google Earth Engine and ArcGIS. With this access, I can begin to obtain data sets of crop yields from countries like Egypt. […]
Introduction Blog
Mar 13, 2022
Hello, my name is Andrew Sheng and I am a senior at BASIS Independent McLean. My senior project focuses on the accuracy and practicality of satellite imagery in determining crop yields. With issues in food insecurity rising with the pandemic, there is an increasing need to determine if satellite imagery is a reliable method to […]