MAPEO Water

Water body characterization with drones

MAPEO Water allows us to process aerial drone images of water bodies like a river, lake or sea. With the MAPEO Water processing workflow we can obtain georeferenced images with corrected quantitative values representative for the water column. This allows us to derive information such as, but not limited to, turbidity or chlorophyll concentrations.

The water case has some specific challenges that need to be tackled. Some of these issues are listed below:

• Water bodies often look dark on images resulting in a much lower signal-to-noise ratio compared to land applications.
• The interaction of the incoming light with the atmosphere just above the water surface might have a major influence (sky glint). Luckily, this can be modelled through a modified version of VITO’s atmospheric correction algorithm iCOR (iCOR4Drones).
• The water surface acts as a mirror (sun glint). Therefore, a well-adapted flight protocol and hardware setup is indispensable.
• The water column is often a dynamic environment subjected to e.g. current or tide resulting in a rapidly changing scene under investigation.

Georeferenced products and hardware setups

Data upload to the MAPEO backend for further processing can be easily done through the Fieldsoftware tool. This software also performs a first quality control while in the field. Guidelines for data collection and upload are available (p. 29 onwards).

Over the past years, VITO Remote Sensing built up an expertise in water body characterization from drones through different research projects supported by Belspo (DroneSED) and the European Commission H2020 program (MONOCLE).

Are you interested to learn more about the value of the output of MapEO water? Contact us to see if we can setup a test campaign to demonstrate how mapEO can support your projects.

Demonstration locations

• Wissenkerke, the Netherlands

  The European water Framework Directive requires member states to monitor water quality aspect related to algae blooms. In the Netherlands, monitoring is performed by Rijkswaterstaat (RWS) with systematic in situ point measurements taken by vessels.
  To better assess chlorophyll-a and turbidity in dynamic waters sucs as the Scheldt, drone observations can be used.
  Read our blog: Monitoring tidal influence on algae with drones
   

• Texel, the Netherlands

  MAPEO-water was tested in Texel, where dune construction works were taking place. To estimate the impact of the construction activities on the water quality, monitoring efforts were established. Adding drone imagery to this database provides additional information on the spatial gradient of water quality at the surface. Raw drone data were converted into turbidity maps and a validation was performed with in-situ data collected simultaneously with the drone flights.
  Read the paper: terra-et-aqua-157-complete.pdf( (iadc-dredging.com)
   

• Lake Marathon, Greece

  Drones can be used to monitor drinking water intakes, as demonstrated for the Athens Water Supply and Sewerage Company (EYDAP). In Lake Marathon, several locations were monitored with drones and raw drone data was converted into turbidity and chlorophyll-a products with MAPEO-water.
   

• Grote Laak, Belgium

  The Flemish Environment Agency used drones to support exavation works in the river Grote Laak in Belgium. Because of the small width of the river, drones are ideal to follow up the turbidity plumes generated in the river.