DigitalGlobe Announces Judges for 8-Band Research Challenge

DigitalGlobe, a leading global content provider of high-resolution earth imagery solutions, today announced it has finalized the judging panel for its inaugural 8-Band Research Challenge. The judges, respected scientists from around the world, will be responsible for reviewing final submissions and selecting the 15 papers that best exemplify sound science and innovative applications of 8-band, high-resolution imagery. Winners will be announced on December 16 and invited to present their findings at the Geospatial World Forum in Hyderabad, India in January.

The DigitalGlobe 8-Band Research Challenge encourages researchers to investigate how 8-band, high-resolution imagery can enhance image analysis and classification research. Commercial 8-band high-resolution imagery is exclusive to DigitalGlobe and delivered via the company’s WorldView-2 commercial satellite. WorldView-2’s 8 spectral sensors are narrowly focused and provide complete coverage of the visual spectrum, along with 2 near-infrared bands. Together the bands are designed to improve the segmentation and classification of land and aquatic features beyond any other space-based remote sensing platform. Ultimately they give scientists a more detailed view of the earth and the ability to analyze information in completely new ways.

The judging panel includes top remote sensing scientists from Europe, the Asia Pacific region and the United States:

* Dr. Ing. Anko Börner - Head of the Department of Information Processing of Optical Systems, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Germany;
* Dr. Stuart R. Phinn – Director of the Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (Australia), and Director of the Centre for Spatial Environmental Research, School of Geography, Planning and Environmental Management, The University of Queensland, Australia;
* Dr. Hrishikesh Samant - Associate Professor of Geology, St. Xavier's College, India and Senior Associate Editor at GIS Development;
* Dr. Walter Scott - Founder and CTO, DigitalGlobe, United States.

“We are honored that such esteemed researchers share our excitement about the potential for 8-band technology, and are eager to help marshall in the next great evolution for geospatial imaging,” said Walter Scott, CTO of DigitalGlobe.

To learn more about DigitalGlobe’s 8-Band multispectral imagery, including detailed datasheets and whitepapers, visit this.

For more information about the DigitalGlobe 8-Band Research Challenge, visit www.8BandChallenge.com.