Watching from space: a collection to discover the territory through satellite images
The 91 scientific popularization articles published by Doctor Joan Bauzà Llinàs in the newspaper Ara Balears are incorporated into the Institutional Repository of the UIB
PalmaThe Institutional Repository of the University of the Balearic Islands has incorporated the collection Watching from space, which brings together 91 popular science articles published by Dr. Joan Bauzà Llinàs, a member of the Climatology, Hydrology, Natural Hazards and Territory (CLIMARIS) research group and the Center for Geographic Information Technologies (CTIG), between the years 2016 and 2020 in the weekend edition of the ARA Balears.
Written in Catalan and aimed at a non-specialized audience, the articles use satellite imagery and other sources of geographic information to observe, interpret, and explain different phenomena of the territory, especially of the Balearic Islands. The initiative takes advantage of the possibilities of remote sensing to formulate questions about the territory and bring the processes hidden behind images captured from space closer to the general public.
Mallorca is the most prominent geographical area in the collection, but the articles also analyze phenomena from the rest of the Balearic Islands, the Mediterranean, and other territories. The texts address issues such as forests, forest fires, floods, wind, land surface temperature, sea level dynamics, light pollution, drought, the sea breeze, episodes of suspended dust, or frost.
Each article is built around an image that acts as the common thread of the story. Based on this visual representation, Bauzà explains the origin of the data and the techniques used to generate them and reflects on the observed phenomenon, its causes, and its territorial, environmental, or social implications. The texts avoid excessive technical terminology and use examples, metaphors, and relatable narratives to make often complex issues understandable.
The images come from different sources and Earth observation technologies, including the Sentinel-2, Landsat, Terra, and Aqua satellites, as well as data obtained through LiDAR sensors. The collection also incorporates products derived from geospatial analysis techniques, such as digital terrain models, natural and false-color compositions, and vegetation indices.