Keith Pelletier

Bio: Keith C. Pelletier is a PhD candidate in the Remote Sensing and Geospatial Analysis Laboratory at the University of Minnesota (UMN). His PhD research in the Natural Resources Assessment, Monitoring, and Geospatial Analysis track employs automated feature extraction techniques using optical, lidar, and field data for mapping and monitoring landscape change in Minnesota. Mr. Pelletier has a BA in Geography and MS in Natural Resources from the University of Vermont. Prior to joining UMN, he worked as a Geospatial Analyst in the Spatial Analysis Laboratory and was a lecturer in Geography at the University of Vermont where he taught cartography, remote sensing, geographic research methods, and GIScience. His past geospatial efforts used automated feature extraction approaches for generating high-resolution land cover datasets from optical and lidar data for tree canopy assessments, stormwater utilities, and hydrologic modeling in collaboration with Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources, the USDA Forest Service, and US Geological Survey.

Come Fly With Me: Adventures with an Unmanned Aircraft System

Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) provide actionable intelligence with rapid imagery collection and 3D models for disaster response, environmental monitoring, and transportation planning. This talk will provide an overview of a fixed-wing UAS that acquires very high resolution imagery and, through post processing, 3D landscape models for mapping and monitoring the changing natural and anthropogenic environment. Attendees will see UAS examples from recent missions that include imaging a train derailment, monitoring erosion processes, and 3D models of urban and rural environments.

unmanned aircraft system, UAS, disaster response, environmental monitoring