Last week I attended the ESRI Petroleum user group in London. I think just over 200 people attended. I missed last year’s event but I have been present at this regular event many times in the past. Many thanks to the organisers – they do an incredible job. Pleasingly, there were plenty of Earth Observation… Read More »GIS Petroleum User Group
This week I attended “Geo-Tech Masterclass: Introduction to satellite APIs” given by Planet (formally Planet Labs) at the Geovation hub in London. The Geovation hub is run by the Ordnance Survey with the “intention to be a centre of collaboration and inspiration in the UK geospatial industry” – exciting times! Earth Observation data can be… Read More »Temporal EO (Planet and the Oilfield)
September 2016 was a busy month for the launch of Earth Observation satellites. Terrabella launched 4 more of its SkySats, bringing the total to 7. We’re excited to share the first light images from our four newest high-resolution imaging satellites, SkySat-4-7! https://t.co/RV5GyaZMPF pic.twitter.com/WbMOGjaG78 — Terra Bella (@terra_bella) September 27, 2016 On the same launch vehicle… Read More »EO data deluge
A Geographical Information System is ideally suited to manage many of the risks associated with exploration and oilfield activities. Risks such as, but not limited to – Accidents, dangerous roads, steep inclines and slopes – In project execution, doing something you were not supposed to do and not knowing you did it – Having to… Read More »GIS to manage exploration risk
I watched a video this week, a presentation given by Brian Boulmay of BP: It is well worth watching, he talks about BP’s One Map Platform. He wants to reach the whole community within his organisation with a map. There is an interesting quote mid-way through (I have paraphrased slightly below) “We queried all desktops… Read More »Reaching everyone with maps
1 History, a chance to look again at EO EO data today should be a more attractive proposition than it has previously been. I looked at an article from World Oil this week, written in 2002. It is worth a read to see how the O&G sector was using EO 14 years ago. “Data prices… Read More »3 reasons to revisit EO again for Oil and Gas
“What is the crossing point of machine learning and Earth Observation?” was the question asked this week at the Satellite Applications Catapult Geospatial 2.0 event at the Harwell campus near Oxford. https://sa.catapult.org.uk/news-events-gallery/events/geospatial-2-0-workshop/ Welcome to everyone attending our Geospatial Workshop today. Perfect clear sky's for Earth Observation! 🌍 pic.twitter.com/LR6lYFfQYb — Satellite Applications Catapult (@SatAppsCatapult) July 13,… Read More »Geospatial 2.0 Workshop
Can a GIS Technician eventually become the CEO of a large company? GIS training industry today Below is the training model for generic GIS training today (July 2016). Many vendors will also offer a training service where they will: Come to you, and/or Build the course tailored to your needs. I don’t have… Read More »Let’s make GIS training more effective
5 ways to increase the value of GIS (for Oil and Gas) There is an excellent 50 page free ebook from Exprodat explaining in detail “Why use GIS in Petroleum”. To borrow a quote: “Spatial analysis lies at the core of GIS – the ability to analyse data based on its spatial relationship to other… Read More »5 ways to increase the value of GIS (for Oil and Gas)
Building on from my previous post, I wanted to follow up with an example. But first this. Permitting in GIS To create a land parcel I can digitise a satellite image, directly record the boundary on the ground, adapt an existing dataset or work with a scanned paper map. I could create a series of… Read More »Permitting & geofencing (again) in the Oilfield
The aim of a seismic survey is to map the subsurface in the most detailed and efficient way, mapping the reservoir so that critical decisions, such as choosing a drilling location, can be made with increased confidence. Definition of the target and an understanding of the quality of data that can be achieved in the… Read More »Geofencing and Exploration
Remote locations need accurate mapping. When an accident happens in the oilfield, knowing where that accident has occurred is critical. It is standard practice to carry a piece of GPS enabled equipment. These coordinates can be read back to a base location and support/help can be dispatched. There are a variety of projections, coordinate systems… Read More »Improving oilfield safety – what3words
In a zoo, animals, for the most part, are kept in separate enclosures. Some are big, some are small, some are aggressive carnivores, some are gentle (or at least appear to be). Different diets, sleep habits, space and health vulnerabilities mean separation is key. Most zoo animals have their own zoo keeper, someone to look… Read More »Data Management Zoo
Two tweets have recently caught my eye. Firstly, the ESA tweeted that Sentinel-2 has now captured enough cloud-free images to create a mosaic of Africa. Five months of #Sentinel2 images create cloud-free mosaic of #Africa https://t.co/B7AvjSRVG6 pic.twitter.com/ENIpZ07aVM — ESA (@esa) May 18, 2016 This is an impressive mosaic, especially when you consider the range… Read More »Free and open satellite data
Put a pen between your teeth leave it there for 20-30 seconds http://goo.gl/ajgWz. Do you feel happier? Geographical Information Systems (GIS) is a tool to solve problems. If you work with GIS that makes you a problem solver. For me solving problems is a key component of my happiness. Providing a solution to someone that… Read More »GIS and me