Atmospheric and Environmental Research Lab

Infrastructure for Data-Advanced Research and Education (I-DARE) to improve NASA's Earth Science applications in Iowa



To apply I-DARE summer camp scholarship, please click here: I-DARE application. Please complete your application by April 1, 2021.

I-DARE Summer campaign


The annul IDARE summer camp will provide financial support up to 15 students from all higher-education institutions in Iowa (including 9 students involved directly in the project) to participate the camp. I-DARE summer camp is designed for both field campaign planning and engagement with undergraduate and graduate students. All investigators and collaborators will offer hands-on classes to the camp participants. The participants will be exposed to, and in some cases actively participate in, all activities associated with the design of field campaigns. This includes system engineering to assemble all instruments and payloads for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles or UAVs or drones. Through the summer camp, participants will develop key concepts and critical thinking about satellite remote sensing and the uncertainties in satellite data.

The I-DARE summer camp will be hosted at UI for 12 days in June of 2021 and 6 days in June of the following three years. The Operator Performance Lab (OPL) will be primary location for most camp activities. Summer camp participants will work at OPL to develop and test airborne platforms. Sensors and systems will first be tested through manned platforms and then deployed through UAVs. Camp participants will help conduct hyperspectral imaging (sensor system) over Iowa.

With hyperspectral data, students will conduct projects to analyze data, including derivation of vegetation index and soil moisture to support crop and soil monitoring, interpretation of atmospheric water vapor absorption in different shortwave and infrared spectrums, atmospheric correction to derive surface reflectance and land surface temperature, and water quality and flood detection. Additionally, we will deliver weather sensors to students to collect observation data of weather (and possibly soil) information. These data will then be used to evaluate NASA’s satellite data of weather and soil.



I-DARE 2021 Group Picture


Professors from I-Dare and the participating students in the 2021 summer campaign at Operator Performance Laboratory