Tech on the Trail - A Bird’s Eye View
August 31, 2007 | Leave a Comment
The Big Blue Marble – Mother Earth, floats in the depths of space before you. Now grab it with your mouse pointer and give it a spin. Continents roll by, mountain ranges, seas & oceans, polar ice caps – zoom in closer and examine obscure islands, jungles, canyons, deserts, rivers. The whole world is within your grasp.
Nowadays, anyone with a decent internet connection and a somewhat modern computer has access to an unprecedented amount of information about our planet, both scientific and geographical. Where do you want to go today? Seriously, Magellan would have fainted dead to the floor. One of the great online satellite programs is Google Earth. With its variety of imagery, mapping, search and layers of technical data - Explorers, tech-heads, and armchair adventurers will all find something useful or entertaining.
Navigation is accomplished through mouse and text based searches. Type in a place you are looking for and if it is in the database you will soon be speeding across the face of the globe to your destination. Resolution varies by region, but a large percentage is in high-detail. It is possible to pan, zoom, rotate and change the elevation and angle of perspective. This makes for a wonderful research tool. Always wondered what was on the other side of the mountain? Now it is just a mouse drag away.
Google Earth is quite user friendly and offers many features of a consumer nature – places such as stores, lodging, gas stations etc. Just select the layers you are interested in and they will be indicated with clear markers.
Another wonderful and publicly available program is NASA Worldwind which offers similar information with much more more technical data derived from government landsats. This program has a little more of a learning curve and seems to require more processing power, otherwise the refresh values can be slow.
Both of these require downloading a program to your computer and an internet connection. Take a look at the basic requirements and make sure your computer meets the necessary specifications.
In future installments of Technology on the Trail we will examine these tools in greater depth, looking at some of the mapping & coordinate features and how to get the best use of these for outdoor recreation.
Tech on the Trail - SnoTel Sites
August 31, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Several hundreds of mysterious antennae can be found scattered amongst the ridges and valleys of 12 western states. Usually a nondescript outhouse sized building combined with several towers of different types. Bristling with sensors, they sit silently, continuously sending communications in bursts of 1950’s radio technology which catch a ride off of a meteors tail while in route to their destination. What are these locations? Relics from the cold war? An attempt to communicate with extra-terrestrials? Some undisclosed monitoring program? Not quite, these are SnoTel sites, which is short for Snowpack Telemetry. A system of automated stations which collect snowpack and related climatic data in the western United States and Alaska.
Developed by the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), the sensors at these stations relay snow depth, snow water equivalent, precipitation, air temperature, as well as soil moisture & temperature. The data is collected by two master stations located in Boise, ID and Ogden, UT, who in turn offer the information online. Both current and historical records can be accessed through the Snotel website.
This is a good resource for outdoor recreationalist venturing in areas near these sites or for a general overview of a region. Care to see what temperature extremes you may encounter, just take a look at the recent 7 day data. Winter enthusiasts can research snow depth and current accumulation as well as investigating the current temperatures effect on the integrity of the snowpack.
Idaho alone has more than 80 sites. Some of the more local ones include Hyndman Creek, Chocolate Gulch, Galena Summit, Dollarhide Summit, Soldier & Garfield Ranger Stations. The interface at the site is fairly simple to use with all the locations clickable on an overview state map as well as a drop down menu with the stations listed alphabetically.
Recently we discussed a basic introduction to Google Earth, and the NCRS has created a data file which overlays an interface upon the Google maps so users can view station info and location there. This really enhances the information and adds to the fun. So take a look, though the site can seem a bit cryptic it is fairly easy to use and is another nice way to explore a destination. Just remember to get out there in person sometime.
