To learn more about how eMap’s change detection and site monitoring capability can help you please contact Kimberly Nale at knale@emap-int.com.

Yes, you read that right, a frogfish! In the summer of 1992 the Dallas World Aquarium had taken a shipment of assorted fishes from Bali, Indonesia for a new attraction that was soon to open. While taking inventory there were two peculiar-looking anglerfish that were discovered. Unfortunately, both fish were in poor condition and soon perished. However, the specimens were preserved and sent off for identification. Once finally analyzed they were misidentified as a cryptic anglerfish and filed away. It was not until 2008, when the species was first photographed in the wild by locals in Indonesia, that the true discovery was realized. In 2009 the International Institute for Species Exploration, named this one of the top 10 species discovered that year.

Local only to Ambon Island, Indonesia this psychedelic creature can be seen bouncing across the sea floor like a rubber ball. The forward motion of this frogfish is created by walking on its pectoral fins while at the same time shooting water through its gills to propel itself forward via a type of jet propulsion. While doing so, the fish takes on a ball shape and mimics a bouncing ball in the wind. Thought this is quite normal for frogfishes, it is very rare to see this type of locomotion in any other sea dwelling creatures.

Most frogfish can be found in the tropical and subtropical regions of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, as well as the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea. Their habitat lies, for the most part, between the 20-degree isotherms, in areas where the surface temperature of the water is 68° F or higher. They extend beyond the 20-degree isotherms in the area of the Azores, Madeira, and the Canary Islands, along the Atlantic coast of the USA, on the south coast of Australia and the northern tip of New Zealand, coastal Japan, around Durban, South Africa, and at Baja California. The most types are found in the Indo-Pacific region with the highest concentration around Indonesia. In the tiny Lembah Strait, north-east of Sulawesi, divers have found nine different species. Frogfish live generally on the ocean floor around coral or rock reefs, at most up to 330ft deep. Keeping all of this in mind, the psychedelic frogfish has only been discovered to roam the waters of the Ambon Island in Indonesia.

As part of the anglerfish family it differs from many in the fact that it lacks luring appendages on its forehead and pelvic fins. It also has a flat face with a mouth smaller than most other anglerfishes and forward-facing eyes. This distinctive optical setup permits the fish to function with the same kind of depth perception as humans, a trait seldom seen in fish. One of the most obvious characteristics of the psychedelic frogfish is the swirling strips of their skin design. This pattern of yellowish brown swirls covers the entire fish including the fins and never changes, even if the habits of the frogfish change. Unlike most fish that change colors during times of feeding and mating this fish remains the same color throughout its life, including all offspring. The psychedelic pattern, like the human finger print, is unique to each individual, allowing researchers to quickly and easily track numerous frogfish in the wild.

Kimberly Nale
Geospatial Analyst
352-682-5650

More than a decade ago, commercial satellite imagery companies got off to a rough start with both Space Imaging (now GeoEye) and Digital Globe losing their first satellites shortly after launch. With perseverance in September of 1999 Space Imaging successfully launched IKONOS, two years later in October 2001 DigitalGlobe put QuickBird into orbit. Incredibly both of these satellites are still capturing imagery long after their design life.

Six years past before a new generation of high res imaging satellites were successfully launched, DigitalGlobe’s WorldView-1 in September 2007 and WorldView-2 in October 2009 with GeoEye launching GeoEye-1 in September 2008. This past December 2011 a new player to the high resolution imagery business entered the market, Astrium’s Pléiades 1a. Astrium, formerly SPOT Image Corporation, is not new to satellite imaging launching SPOT 1 in 1986 but Pléiades was their first foray into sub-meter imaging. In November 2012 Astrium plans to launch the Pléiades twin, 1b. Presently being built are GeoEye-2, to launch in 2013 and Worldview-3 to launch in 2014.

The point of all of these facts and dates is to illustrate how we are quickly reaching the long sought critical mass, attaining the ability to capture high resolution satellite imagery of every place on the face of the earth (bar clouds) every day. It has taken over a decade and a half to reach this lofty goal but that time is fast approaching.

Reaching this capability is truly a game changer. Imagine the vertical markets and scientific endeavors that can be served for the first time with this global imaging capability. As a Photogrammetrist and Mapping Scientist I am excited and humbled to participate in the satellite imagery business at this point in time and look forward to serving our clients by finally delivering on the vision.

David K. Nale, President/CEO
Certified Photogrammetrist
Certified Mapping Scientist
Professional Land Surveyor
352-258-1631

Sonar maps make it easier to see the entire site from a whole new perspective and bring up new questions about the Titanic and other sites like it. A detailed site map allows researchers to visit the site again and again. Could such a map successfully be created to document and catalog the largest features, from bow to stern, down to the smallest bottles and buttons, without destroying them? According to the Wall Street Journal, “Investigators can now answer questions like how the ship broke apart, how it went down and whether there was a fatal flaw in the design. The layout of the wreckage site and where the pieces landed provide new clues on exactly what happened.”

The first sonar systems were developed shortly after the Titanic sunk to locate and avoid icebergs. The technology continued to improve throughout the Second World War but underwater exploration and photography were still not available. Global Positioning Systems (GPS) provides a platform to integrate the sonar data with sophisticated maps and mosaicked imagery. Manned submersibles are capable of traveling deeper than the Titanic, enabling scientists to peer through small portholes and rely on deployed instruments and mechanical arms to interact with the environment outside.

GIS is a tool that allows teams to measure, plot and record the location of each feature and artifact and place them in “the real world” as represented by the GPS coordinates for the site and its major features. Through the plotting of each feature, patterns of distribution, showing how each piece fell to the sea bed, allows the team to reconstruct the sinking and break-up of Titanic, how it went down and why. One of the most striking observations of the expedition reveals that the bow and stern of the Titanic tore apart and sank separately but remain largely intact.

Mapping combined with AUVs set a new standard for deep-water archaeology and the documentation of underwater sites. It will serve as a scientific tool to provide the means to monitor changes to the site, while managing and protecting significant maritime memorial and historical archaeological sites.

Jennifer Dubrow
Geospatial Analyst
720-771-7848

Benefits of this collaboration include:

• Rapid data dissemination to targeted audiences and the general public during a disaster

• Better situational awareness through ESRI and Microsoft technologies for critical decision support

• More information management resource availability for governments and leading response organizations through the combined efforts of ESRI and Microsoft

For more than 20 years Microsoft and ESRI have been working together to deliver complete GIS solutions to its clients, and provide those solutions on a platform that is easily shared across organizations and verticals. ESRI’s Arc 10.1 and ArcGIS Online enable users to easily store and manage vector, raster, and survey data directly in SQL Server. As a core component of the information infrastructure, spatial data is available for fundamental business and government activities, such as mapping customer locations, site selection, routing and logistics, utility asset management, land records management and tax assessment, and customer care. Users can deploy spatial data and mapping solutions to any client, from any server, anywhere on the network.

Kimberly Nale
Geospatial Analyst
352-682-5650