Pint of Science – drones and laser scanning in river science

Doors 6.30pm, event 7.30 to 9.30pm

Pint of Science Worcester : these are the drones you’re looking for

Pint of Science is a worldwide science festival that takes place 20-22 May and brings researchers to your local pub to present their scientific discoveries.

As part of this unique celebration and sharing of science in Worcester, 2 experts from The University of Worcester will discuss the use of technology within river science and capture how drones and lasers can be utilised to help the understanding and development of river science, including the measurement of bank erosion, soil erosion, changes over time and flooding.

Drones for good: using unmanned aerial vehicles for river surveys
Professor Ian Maddock (Professor of River Science )
@Ian_Maddock
Drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are revolutionising the way we carry out some types of river surveys. This talk will describe how drone photographs are being used to provide ultra-high resolution data on rivers, their features, their floodplains and how they change over time. It will also outline how research is being carried out to analyse drone video to measure the surface velocity of the water, eliminating the need for people or equipment to be in contact with the water, which is especially important at high flows or during floods.
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Terrestrial laser scanning and 3D river bank modelling
Rebecca Collins (PhD Student and Associate Lecturer )
@BeckyC85
Terrestrial Laser Scanning is allowing for unprecedented levels of detail to be collected from our environment. This talk will introduce the concept of laser scanning and how it is being used to investigate rates of riverbank erosion, riverbank roughness and helping to understand the conditions that result in the greatest amounts of riverbank change. However, ultra-high resolution data of this type is not without its’ problems, so we will discuss the pitfalls and problems associated with laser scanning and pose the question, is there such a things as too much data?