1. AusCover Facility
The Remote Sensing Data & Validation Facility
Presentation by Alex Held – Facility Director

2. Facility Objectives
Production and delivery of
nationally consistent long‐time
series of satellite‐based biophysical
map products and next generation
remote sensing research data that
is validated for Australian
conditions.

3. Science Questions
• How, in space and time, have key environmental variables changed over
the period of satellite image archives for Australia?
• AusCover portal will deliver several spatially explicit datasets on
several biophysical variables measured via remote sensing

4. Science Questions
• How, in space and time, have key environmental variables changed over
the period of satellite image archives for Australia?
• AusCover portal will deliver several spatially explicit datasets on
several biophysical variables measured via remote sensing
• Can we measure at regional scales the relative benefits/impacts of
legislated environmental management programs on Australia's major land
and coastal ecosystems?
• Derived datasets will be produced at various levels of spatial
resolution to allow for investigation into different types of impacts

5. Science Questions
• How, in space and time, have key environmental variables changed over
the period of satellite image archives for Australia?
• AusCover portal will deliver several spatially explicit datasets on
several biophysical variables measured via remote sensing
• Can we measure at regional scales the relative benefits/impacts of
legislated environmental management programs on Australia's major land
and coastal ecosystems?
• Derived datasets will be produced at various levels of spatial
resolution to allow for investigation into different types of impacts
• Can we measure at regional scales the relative benefits/impacts of
legislated environmental management programs on Australia's major land
and coastal ecosystems?
• Derived datasets will be produced at various levels of spatial
resolution to allow for investigation into different types of impacts

6. Facility infrastructure:
Processes that are complete and operational (what is working);

7. Facility infrastructure:
Processes that are complete and operational (what is working);
Remote Sensing Data Delivery Backbone
• Solving data formats, interoperability, data-policy,
• Physical storage, efficient delivery to end-users etc.

8. Facility infrastructure:
Processes that are complete and operational (what is working);
Remote Sensing Data Delivery Backbone
• Solving data formats, interoperability, data-policy,
• Physical storage, efficient delivery to end-users etc.
Data Production Network (via Central Console and 7 Regional “Nodes”)
• Nationally-consistent, standard biophysical data products,
• Metadata and technical support documents
• Specialised space-borne, airborne & in-situ research-grade data

9. Facility infrastructure:
Processes that are complete and operational (what is working);
Remote Sensing Data Delivery Backbone
• Solving data formats, interoperability, data-policy,
• Physical storage, efficient delivery to end-users etc.
Data Production Network (via Central Console and 7 Regional “Nodes”)
• Nationally-consistent, standard biophysical data products,
• Metadata and technical support documents
• Specialised space-borne, airborne & in-situ research-grade data
Ground Validation Program and Instrumentation
• Set national standards & field validation protocols,
• TERN SuperSites and Environmental transects etc.
• International Benchmarking (eg CEOS WGCV LPV)

10. Stakeholders
• Academia and Research Agencies
• Biodiversity and ecosystem fragmentation studies
• CSIRO, ABARES, CRCs – Next Generation Land-surface
models, hydrological modeling, remote sensing science
teams, etc.
• Government Agencies
• State: NRM Agencies, Agriculture and Forestry agencies
• Federal: DAFF, SEWPaC, DCCEE, GA, BoM
• NGOs
• Overseas users
• GEO working groups (eg. GEO BON); world climate
forecasting centres, regional carbron-cycle programs,
Cal/Val groups in space agencies, etc.

11. AusCover USER Advisory Network
Nick Cuff (DNRE)
John Carter (QDERM)
Damian Barrett (UQ)
Mike Grundy (CSIRO)
Charlie Thom (Curtin U.)
Bruce Buckley (IAG)
John Leys (DECC)
Anna Dutkievicz (DENR)
Richard Thackway (ABARES)
Andrew Haywood (DEC) Matt Bolton (SEWPAC)
Tony Boston (BoM – Water)
Shanti Reddy (DCCEE)

12. Summary of datasets
http://data.auscover.org.au/wiki and go to Product Pages
Functional group Key products
Land Cover Dynamic Land Cover Map, MODIS Fractional Cover.
Landsat FPC, Ground Cover, Forest Cover.
Ecosystem Variables Vegetation Indices NDVI, EVI, LAI, fPAR.
Land Cover Dynamics, Phenology, Disturbance Index.
Fire Burned area, Fire Frequency, Thermal Anomalies.
Radiation, Meteorology and Rainfall, Temperature, Vapour Pressure, Solar Radiation,
Ancillary Albedo, LST and Emissivity, Soil Moisture.
Base Satellite Data and Landsat Cloud Free Reflectance, MODIS Surface Reflectance
Inputs to Satellite Processing Aerosol Optical Depth, Total Column Water Vapour and O3.
Site-based Datasets AusCover Validation Sites and Airborne Data.
Fractional Cover and SLATS Field Sites.
Hyperion Hyperspectral Data.
Atmosphere MODIS Aerosol, Water Vapour, Cloud Mask, Dust, Smoke

13. Technical and production network
Links to International
Networks
Darwin Node
Stefan Maier (CDU)
Technical Officer (CDU)
Brisbane Node
Kasper Johansen UQ)
Peter Scarth (QDERM)
Perth Node Rebecca Trevithick (UQ)
Merv Lynch (Curtin)
Peter Fearns (Curtin)
Mat Whyatt (ANDS/iVEC)
Luke Edwards (Curtin/iVEC)
Mark Gray (Curtin)
Mark Broomhall (Curtin)
Helen Chedzey (Curtin) Sydney Node
Alfredo Huete (UTS)
Technical Officer (UTS)
Adelaide Node
Megan Lewis (UA)
Ken Clarke (UA)
Canberra Node
Alex Held (CSIRO)
Melbourne Node Tim Malthus (CSIRO)
Ian Grant (BoM) Medhavy Thankappan (GA)
Paul Loto’aniu (BoM) Juan Pablo Guershman (CSIRO)
Simon Jones (RMIT) Leo Lymbruner (GA)
Barbara Rashaia (RMIT) Matt Paget (CSIRO)
Matt Nethery (CSIRO)

14. AusCover Data Production Network
Data from Other National Agencies
And International Space Agencies
Darwin Node and Collaborators
Burt-Area and Bushfire
Products and Validation
Brisbane Node
Foliage Projected Cover
Airborne Data Products
Perth Node Field Data & Validation
Surface Reflectance Products,
Hyperspectral data, atmospheric
Correction ancillary data;
Field Validation
Sydney Node
Time-Series Vegetation Indexes
Phenology Products continental +
Adelaide Node In-situ, Validation
Fractional Land-Cover in
Ragelands + Field Validation
Canberra Node
Leaf-Area Index/FPAR Product
Melbourne Node Fractional Cover
Gridded Climatology Data
Dynamic Land Cover Map
Airborne Data and in-situ
Airborne Data products
Sensor data.

15. Current Status: Data Delivery Backbone
http://data.auscover.org.au
Central
Portal
UQ
iVEC
Data Fabric NCI CSIRO
VPAC BoM
Source: http://www.aarnet.edu.au Online
Coming soon

16. Technologies – Current Status
Standalone services
Distributed servers Local management. CSIRO , iVEC and NCI
Flexible and scalable. (ARCS/RDSI), UQ, BoM
Variety of data Application specific. NetCDF-CF “gold standard”
formats Raster / Vector / Database. Code to translate
Programmable data Access via URLs. HTTP, THREDDS, OPeNDAP,
access Large dataset processing. Geoserver
Aggregated services
Central website Links to all services. http://data.auscover.org.au
News, Updates, Glossary. Drupal
Metadata repository Collection level records. http://mest.auscover.org.au
Harvestable by TERN Portal. Geonetworks
Visualisation portal WMS enabled datasets. http://portal.auscover.org.au
Node and User Wiki Product description pages. http://data.auscover.org.au/wiki
Community validation Global field photo library. http://www.eomf.ou.edu
Geo-Wiki. http://auscover.geo-wiki.org

17. AusCover Metadata Tool
http://mest.auscover.org.au

18. AusCover Portal
http://portal.auscover.org.au

19. SAMPLES

20. AusCover Data Calibration
Grey
White Black
Three calibration targets
Deployment of calibration targets at the Chowilla Supersite during
the hyperspectral flight campaign

21. VEGNET trial in Central Victoria

22. Land Cover Dynamics and Annual
Anomalies
MODIS-Terra EVI standard anomaly in drought (2009) and wet (2010) periods

23. AVHRR Fire Frequency (1997 – 2009)
-
fire frequency (pa)
1
0

24. Detection and monitoring of landscape
disturbance events (Disturbance Index)
MGDI 2001-2005
2
1.8
1.6
1.4
1.2
MGDI
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
2001-2002 2002-2003 2004-2005 2005-2006
Year
Canberra Fire (ACT) – high severity
Duration : 09/01/2003-19/01/2003
*DI products in Area Burnt : 1.5 m ha
development shrubby dry sclerophyll forests , grassy
(AusCover- woodlands,
Sydney) grassy wet sclerophyll forests

25. Joint Validation of New Mapping Products
(eg. Dynamic Land Cover Map – GA)

26. Land-Cover Dynamics of TERN SUPERSITES
WARRA Enhanced Vegetation Index
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
2/17/96 2/17/97 2/17/98 2/17/99 2/17/00 2/17/01 2/17/02 2/17/03 2/17/04 2/17/05 2/17/06 2/17/07
Alice Springs mean_evi
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
3/4/96 3/4/97 3/4/98 3/4/99 3/4/00 3/4/01 3/4/02 3/4/03 3/4/04 3/4/05 3/4/06 3/4/07

27. Planned activities post 2014
(role in defining paths to address critical gaps in TERN and sustaining it beyond 2014).
• Establish permanent EO data product delivery
system and associated capability
• Closer collaboration with international programs
(e.g. NEON)
• Establish permanent data calibration and product
validation capability
• Work with R&D sector to transition to new sensor
systems and new derived products
• Acquire additional airborne and high-resolution
datasets for R&D and validation

28. Thank you
Facility Contact Details
Alex Held – Facility Director
Rowena Smith – Facility Coordinator
Matt Paget – Data and Systems Coordinator
CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research
GPO Box 3023
Canberra, ACT 2601
Australia
Tel.: 61-2-6246 5630
Fax: 61-2-6246 5988
Email: alex.held@csiro.au / rowena.smith@csiro.au / matt.paget@csiro.au