artificial intelligence

Articles about how artificial intelligence is being used in advancing geospatial technologies.

Maps and Cartography

When AI Goes Wrong in Spatial Reasoning

December 14, 2018By Mark AltaweelMaps and Cartography

Machines can learn ‘wrong’ or biased information, creating large problems and poor conclusions when it comes to spatial data.

Geospatial Artificial Intelligence: Emerging Trends and Challenges

July 9, 2018By Mark AltaweelGIS Industry

There are both challenges and opportunities that Artificial Intelligence (AI) has in applying geospatial and GIS knowledge that also addresses issues of time and spatial bias.

Researchers are Using Machine Learning to Better Predict Weather Patterns

August 24, 2017By Caitlin DempseySpatial Analysis

The enormous amount of data from Earth-observing satellites is pushing researchers to use machine learning to mine the information and improve climate models.

Using Visual Search to Find Geographically Similar Features on Satellite Imagery

March 7, 2017By Caitlin DempseySpatial Analysis

Descartes Labs recently unveiled its GeoVisual Search application which uses machine learning to visually search satellite imagery for similar geographic features.

Flood susceptibility map from Tehran et al., 2015.

GIS and Innovations in Machine Learning

November 9, 2016By Mark AltaweelSpatial Analysis

Machine learning or artificial techniques has been rapidly transforming many areas related to GIS and spatial applications

The examples on the left are the query photos. In response, PlaNet will output a probability distribution on the map. In these three examples, the Eiffel Tower (a) is confidently assigned to Paris, the model believes that the fjord photo (b) could have been taken in either New Zealand or Norway. For the beach photo (c), PlaNet assigns the highest probability to southern California (correct), but some probability mass is also assigned to places with similar beaches, like Mexico and the Mediterranean. The authors use a model with a much lower spatial resolution than the full model for visualization purposes. Source: Weyand, Kostrikov, & Philbin, 2016.

Google’s PlaNet: Geolocating Photos Using Artificial Intelligence

March 11, 2016By A.J. RohnGIS Learning

Google and researchers at the RheinischWestfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen University have developed an artificial intelligence system capable of identifying locations more consistently accurately than a human is able to do.

Dense settlements (left) can take advantage of short-range wireless hotspots. Sparse settlements (right) require long-range cellular technology. Images: Digitalglobe.

GIS and Artificial Intelligence Used to Build Facebook’s World Population Map

March 1, 2016By Troy LambertGIS Data

Facebook has used a combination of existing GIS data, high resolution imagery, and artificial intelligence to develop a detailed population map of the world.

Orbital Insight uses shadows detected on satellite imagery to track construction rates in Nanjing, China.

Orbital Insight Exemplifies How Artificial Intelligence (AI) Can Be Used to Study Images from Space

October 20, 2015By Zachary RomanoGIS Learning

Orbital Insights has developed a “deep learning” processes which uses artificial intelligence to pull data from satellite imagery.

Land use map from CARETS Final Report, 1979.

GIS From the Past: CARETS

In the early 1970s, a joint pilot project between NASA and the USGS sought to test out the feasibility of integrating data from Landsat and high-altitude aircraft sensors into a regional land use database.

Geospatial Climate Models Show How Fire Seasons Are Changing

Changing technologies, including new satellite systems, and better climate and fire modeling, including the integration of these tools and data capture methods, will likely mean improved fire modeling in the future.

Elements of a Map

Maps are the primary tools by which spatial relationships are visualized. Maps therefore become important documents. There are several key elements that should be included each time a map is created in order to aid the viewer in understanding the communications of that map and to document the source of […]

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