Digital Earth Watch And Picture Post Network: Measuring The Environment Through Digital Images

Digital Earth Watch (DEW) involves individuals, schools, organizations and communities in a systematic monitoring project of their local environment, especially vegetation health. The program offers people the means to join the Picture Post network and to study and analyze their own findings using DEW software. A Picture Post is an easy-to-use and inexpensive platform for repeatedly taking digital photographs as a standardized set of images of the entire 360° landscape, which then can be shared over the Internet on the Picture Post website. This simple concept has the potential to create a wealth of information and data on changing environmental conditions, which is important for a society grappling with the effects of environmental change. Picture Posts may be added by anyone interested in monitoring a particular location. The value of a Picture Post is in the commitment of participants to take repeated photographs - monthly, weekly, or even daily - to build up a long-term record over many years. This poster will show examples of Picture Post pictures being used for capturing seasonal plant phenological events, monitoring the recovery of a landscape following a large storm, and intrusion of an invasive species. DEW is being developed by a collaborative effort led by the University of New Hampshire with the Federation of Earth Science Information Partners, the University of Southern Maine, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute, with support from NASA. We invite individuals, schools, informal education centers, groups and communities to join. Please visit us at our web site: