Investigating Crop and Soil Properties using Remote Sensing Big Data for Supporting Precision Agriculture

The Canadian agricultural sector is facing a wide range of challenges that include depleting natural resources (e.g., water), environmental pollution (e.g., fertilizers), and climate change. Precision agriculture is a method of farming that uses technologies to monitor soil and crop status and support timely and variable-rate farming practices. It is thus a promising approach to address challenges faced by the agricultural sector. Remote sensing (e.g., drone- and satellite-based imaging) is an essential technology in precision agriculture, which is capable of identifying within-field soil and crop variability and detecting crop stresses (e.g., water and nutrient shortages), providing critical information to perform site-specific management. In this project, interns will utilize cutting-edge remote sensing techniques and innovative models for investigating soil and crop properties. The partner organizations will be able to use the research results for precision agriculture and improve the efficiency and environmental sustainability of farming practices.

Faculty Supervisor:

Bing Lu;Margaret Schmidt

Student:

Partner:

Terramera Inc;i-Open Technologies;Miraterra

Discipline:

Earth science

Sector:

Agriculture; Manufacturing; Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

Simon Fraser University

Program: