The manatee, one of Florida’s most endangered species, relies almost entirely on submerged aquatic vegetation as a food source. ©Adobe Stock / Eric Carlander
Florida’s waters are home to many endangered species that rely on healthy and well-functioning marine and coastal ecosystems. The health of its submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV), such as microalgae and seagrasses, is a key indicator of the ecological status of ocean and estuarine waters – and affects marine animals greatly. For instance, the manatee, one of Florida’s most endangered species, relies almost entirely on SAV as a food source. In 2021, SAV degradation resulted in the death of over 1000 manatees due to starvation.
That is why up-to-date knowledge about SAV abundance, distribution, health and growth dynamics is critical to protect marine health. Traditionally, a combination of diver observations, photos and/or video recordings, have been used to monitor SAV habitats. However, these techniques are time-consuming, labour intensive, highly limited and unable to fully capture the spatiotemporal dynamics.
Now, modern satellite technology provides a reliable, consistent, and cost-efficient alternative. Read how:
https://blog.dhigroup.com/2022/05/06/smarter-and-more-efficient-conservation-planning-through-the-lens-of-satellites/
About the DHI-Airbus Defence and Space partnership
Satellite technology plays a significant role in enhancing water management and protection, which is why the partnership between DHI and Airbus Defence and Space is so important.
2022 marks the 10th anniversary since DHI and Airbus Defence and Space first signed a partnership agreement. DHI is the official reseller of Airbus satellite data in Denmark and has distributed data to clients worldwide to support more efficient and effective environmental management solutions. In 2014, DHI won the ‘Best Newcomer’ award at the Airbus Channel Partner Conference for its consistent delivery of solutions on time and on budget. Two years later, DHI bagged another ‘Rising Star’ award for its partnership projects with Airbus within the Northern Europe and Middle East region.
In the last couple of years, the two organisations have been working closely to acquire fresh satellite data of more than 200,000 km2 in Greenland. This data plays a major role in enabling large-scale mapping to understand Earth’s resources and de-risk Arctic maritime navigation.
Mads Christensen from DHI’s Data & Analytics team shares, ‘The global coverage of satellites provides a unique, fact-based perspective to help us overcome some of our world’s greatest challenges – and Airbus Defence and Space has been on the forefront of satellite technology innovation for over 30 years.
‘Coupled with our domain expertise in satellite remote sensing, our partnership with Airbus Defence and Space enables us to leverage some of the best satellite data available, to develop novel downstream services and deliver up-to-date geospatial insight on dynamic and inaccessible environments worldwide.
Over the years, our partnership with Airbus Defence and Space has enabled us to explore new possibilities within earth observation and serve our clients with cutting edge products and applications as well as some of the best imagery available.’
Contact us to know more about using satellite technology to support your environmental management efforts.