2011 Awards Presented For Achievements In Earth Remote Sensing

[NASA News <hqnews@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Nov. 15, 2011

Steve Cole 
Headquarters, Washington      
202-358-0918 
stephen.e.cole@xxxxxxxx 

RELEASE: 11-382

2011 AWARDS PRESENTED FOR ACHIEVEMENTS IN EARTH REMOTE SENSING

WASHINGTON -- NASA and the U.S. Department of the Interior presented 
the 2011 William T. Pecora awards to Alan H. Strahler, professor of 
geography and environment at Boston University, and to the Canada 
Centre for Remote Sensing at a ceremony Tuesday in Herndon, Va. 

Strahler was recognized for his contributions to remote-sensing 
science, leadership and education, which have improved the 
fundamental understanding of the remote-sensing process and its 
applications for observing land surface properties. The Canada Centre 
for Remote Sensing received the group award for outstanding 
collaboration across national boundaries. 

The awards were presented at the Pecora 18 Symposium by Michael 
Freilich, director of NASA's Earth Science Division in the Science 
Mission Directorate and Lori Caramanian, Department of the Interior's 
deputy assistant secretary for water and science. 

"Understanding of our home planet and predicting future global 
environmental changes require both individual technical efforts and 
worldwide collaborations," Freilich said. "This year's awards 
acknowledge just how important sustained, decades-long efforts by 
individuals and nations are to Earth science, and the benefits they 
can bring to the world." 

Strahler's early theoretical contributions in describing the 
interactions of light with forest trees led to realistic and 
quantifiable approaches employed today in many areas of remote 
sensing. Strahler also advanced the field of image analysis by 
developing new methods for incorporating spatial information. His 
innovative methods for incorporating spatial information such as 
size, shape, and texture in the interpretation of remotely sensed 
image data were important in the coupling of remote sensing with 
geographic information systems. 

The Canada Centre for Remote Sensing was recognized for advancing the 
understanding of Earth over a period of 40 years through the 
development of important technologies and innovative applications. 

The centre contributed substantially to the success of global 
remote-sensing technology through partnerships with many different 
groups, domestically and internationally. As a national 
remote-sensing program, the centre served as a model for numerous 
other countries where visiting scientists learned advanced 
remote-sensing science and how to organize a national remote-sensing 
program. 

NASA and the Department of the Interior present individual and group 
Pecora Awards to honor outstanding contributions in the field of 
remote sensing and its application to understanding Earth. 

The award was established in 1974 to honor the memory of William T. 
Pecora, former director of the U.S. Geological Survey and 
undersecretary of the Department of the Interior. Pecora was 
influential in the establishment of the Landsat satellite program, 
which created a continuous, nearly 40-year record of Earth's land 
areas. 

For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit: 

http://www.nasa.gov 

	
-end-



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