Program Topics

  • Applications of remote sensing data and GIS for environmental issues

Environmental changes associated with human-nature interactions and their causes increase the needs to address the consequences taking place in the structural and functional ecosystems. Anthropogenic activities raise the burdens on the natural system by modifying land use and land cover, bringing up water, soil and air pollution, changing regional and global climate, and increasing frequency of natural disasters, e.g., floods, landslides. The authorities and people are increasingly pressured by the challenges in balancing the demands and development, while lessening the detrimental impacts of social processes on environment. Remote sensing and GIS have been proven with their advantages in providing data and tools to model and visualize spatiotemporally environmental changes and influential factors so that practical policy for environmental protection and management can be proposed.

This session seeks for papers on advancing the development of techniques and models with remote sensing and GIS to contribute to environmental applications, exhibit and visualize influences of human activities on environmental changes, and improve the understanding of the relationship between anthropogenic activities and natural system and climate patterns. Solutions for environmental management in short- and long-term visions are very welcome.


  • Smart city, environmental hazards, and health

With the continuous development of the Internet and information technology, from personal computers to smart phones, social networks, 4G communication, and cloud technologies are highly developed. Big Data and the Internet of Things (IoT), has greatly changed our lives, work, and even the way of thinking. The use of long-range low-power communication technologies, portable devices, and various environmental monitoring devices have changed our traditional environmental monitoring system. Therefore, combining the concept, a Smart city is a city that uses different types of sensors (traditional ones or IoT) to monitor or collect data and then analyze the data to manage assets, resources, and services efficiently, to increase the resilience or the sustainability of the city in various aspects concerning environmental changes. By integrating the environmental database, we can systematically connect device and information originally distributed in different time and space, and continuously collect environmental data and using data analysis technology to extract valuable information from environmental monitoring data, which can provide the end-users with more accurate decision-making assistance. Accordingly, this session aims to focus on the smart city applications of (1) the health, water, and environmental issues, (2) combining various huge amounts of environmental data and using IoT, (3) information and communication technology, (4) environmental database, (5) data science, and (6) building resilience or enhancing sustainability under environmental changes, to complete the analysis and research of environmental issues including environmental hazards, air quality, water environment, their impact on the health of the ecosystem (society and nature) of the city, risk assessment and adaptation measures or pathways to respond to the risks or opportunities.



  • Surveying and Accommodation for the Interaction between the Environment、Resources and Geohazards

The session will focus on multi-disciplinary applied and fundamental research and the societal impacts related to the interaction between the environment, resources, and geohazards. Recently, we noticed that the massive geo-hazards (e.g. earthquakes, volcanic activity, landslides, tsunamis, typhoon…etc.) may trigger a huge impact to the environment, resulting in the environmental problems such as the water pollution or the depletion of the groundwater resources. And the environment changes due to the global warming and extreme weather may further change the magnitude or the frequencies of the massive geohazzard events. In addition, the developments and use of the geo-resources can also causes the environmental changes. Thus it is needed to bring in multi-disciplinary professionals for resolving the call of the intensifying public attention on the interaction between the environment, resources, and geohazards.


  • Space weather & Satellite remote Observations

This session focuses on space weather observations in the Earth’s magnetosphere, ionosphere, thermosphere, and upper atmosphere as well as satellite remote sensing the Earth’s environment. Ionospheric irregularities and scintillations impacting on satellite positioning, navigation, and communication; and ionospheric variations triggered by solar disturbances, solar winds, magnetic storms, severe weather, earthquakes, tsunami waves, etc. as well as the latest development of satellite remote sensing techniques on the Earth’s environment will be discussed.


  • Networking for Atmospheric observation

All national climate activities, including research and applications, are primarily based on observations of the state of the atmosphere or weather. Public/private/government sectors demand for accurate prediction of weather and climate at various temporal and spatial scales is increasing due to possible impacts of global climate variability and change. Thus, intensive monitoring of atmospheric system through different platform based observing systems provide not only the necessary information about current state of atmosphere, their effective database provides important guidance for skillful forecasts generation. In order to reduce the bias of observation and to gain comparable results, regional to global scale of cooperative networks with consistent procedure, operation, maintenance, and data quality control are thriving. Global-wide networks are usually operating by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Programmes (i.e., Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) Surface Network (GSN), the GCOS Upper-Air Network (GUAN), Regional Basic Climatological Networks, Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW), Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN)) and relevant environmental programmes of other international organizations (such as the NASA Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET), Micro-Pulse Lidar Network (MPLNET), and the Surface PARTiculate mAtter Network (SPARTAN)). Examples for regional networks are the European Aerosol Research Lidar Network (EARLINET), the Atmospheric Mercury Network (AMNet), the Asia Pacific Mercury Monitoring Network (APMMN), the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia (EANET) and Asian Dust Network (AD-Net). In addition, the national-wide networks with specific focus such as air quality, acid rain, GPS, green energy, weather, atmospheric flux etc are welcome to submit your abstracts to this session.


  • Observations、Modeling and Management in Estuaries and Coastal Areas

The coastal region is the interface zone from land to the ocean. This region spans coupling dynamics with waves, wind, tides, morphology, and also receives inputs from estuaries. In addition to the impacts from nature forcing, the vulnerability of the coast to anthropogenic influences is another societal concern. Abstracts focusing on physical processes and management issues in the coastal region are invited. We welcome abstracts describing field observations, numerical and laboratory modeling, and management in coastal and estuary areas.


  • Atmospheric and oceanic remote sensing for high-impact weather and climate

High-impact weathers, like tropical cyclones, extreme precipitations, droughts, blizzards, tornados, etc., are constantly threatening human lives and activities globally. They cause a large number of deaths and costly damage every year. Better understanding and monitoring the formation and development of the high-impact weathers are necessary to mitigate their impacts and save lives. Although increasing attention has focused on this aspect, to predict them is still a huge challenge due to the nature of complex air-sea interaction. Many involved mechanisms or/and processes are not well-known yet. Thanks to the advance in remote sensing techniques, like geostationary, infrared and microwave satellites and autonomic floats, unprecedented amount of data from the top of atmosphere to ocean interior are simultaneously obtained on a regular basis. These remote sensing data provide a unique chance to “see” the weather from different aspects. It is important to understand the relevant physical mechanisms and eventually to model the high-impact weathers. Currently, climate change is an extremely important global issue. It is believed to fundamentally change the patterns and behaviors of the high-impact weathers, and also the sea level. Therefore, better knowledge of climate change will put us in a better position to deal with our vulnerable environments.

This session is open to all aspects related to:

  1. Atmospheric and oceanic remote sensing including ground-based and space-based.

  2. High-impact weathers (e.g., typhoons, extreme precipitation, droughts, etc.)

  3. Air-sea interaction, especially under severe weather conditions

  4. Climate change in different time scales (e.g., El Nino, global warming)

  5. Simulation and modelling

Other multi-disciplinary subjects in high-impact weather and remote sensing are also welcome. We hope that this session provides an opportunity to exchange ideas and aspects for people who are enthusiastic about meteorology, oceanography and earth remote sensing.


  • Ocean Observation and Ocean Radar

The aims of this session are twofold, one to share new inovative remote -sensing and in-situ technologies that address on the needs of the oceanographic community, and second to exchange experiences among coastal radar users.


  • Marine/Coastal Environment and Fisheries Resource Sensing

This session focused on the principles, techniques, and the applications of satellite and acoustic remote sensing & GIS, particularly the incorporation with marine fisheries resources management, marine sanctuaries and protected areas, marine fisheries and coastal data models, web GIS for marine and coastal data, pelagic/benthic habitat mapping, and the integration of spatial analysis with policy, legal and/or economic issues, particularly in the coastal zone. In addition, the possible influence of climate change on the above topics especially for top-predator fishery (i.e. Tuna) was also expected.


  • Natural Disaster Reduction and Risk Assessment

Natural disasters have caused tremendous threat to humans and infrastructures every year. Among natural disasters, floods, urban storm water, landslides, debris flow etc. frequently cause life and damage loss. Forecasting and monitoring are always challenging tasks. Warning systems are necessary to mitigate the damages. In the efforts to take countermeasures against the threats by future natural disasters, assessing and reducing risk are crucial for emergency responses to minimise vulnerabilities and disasters. The aim of this session is to provide a forum to discuss various topics in the field of disaster reduction and risk assessment.


  • Water quality management and ecological service studies

Water quality management is essential for satisfying both human and ecosystem needs for secure and safe water resources. This has become more difficult when climate changes are increasing the risks of abnormal flow regimes in many rivers, watersheds, human-dominated and natural landscape. The importance of water use and management, benefits provided as ecosystem services by water systems, and threats to the sustainability of water resource due to catchment land-use pattern and other human activities have aroused public concern for decades. To enhance better understanding of the complex interactions of hydrological, ecological, economic, engineering and social aspects of water systems, long-term monitoring data of water quality would be key for enabling analysis, modelling, predicting the changes of water resources, and thus survival of species, the functioning and resilience of ecosystems, the strength of economics, and the sustainability of ecosystem services to support human societies. This special session encourages oral and poster presentations for any researches on water quality management and ecological services in all kinds of water systems.


  • Agriculture and Forest Sensing