Call for Papers – Earth Information Systems/Capacity Building
Download Call for Papers PDF here.
www.Earthzine.org is an informative scientific online journal dedicated to promoting the societal benefits of Earth Observations and the utilization of Earth information in planning and policy. Sponsored by the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers), Earthzine supports the Group on Earth Observation in establishing the Global Earth Observation System of Systems. Earthzine seeks to explore the application of scientific and technological research as well as policy and its implementation for the benefit of society.
We invite you to submit an article and become part of a growing, professionally diverse community and global readership network working to build the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS).
www.Earthzine.org is soliciting articles for its theme issue on Earth information systems and capacity building. We are seeking contributions addressing issues related to the design, development, maintenance, and operation of Earth information systems and observation platforms, as well as topics related to infrastructure and capacity building for such systems. This may include a wide range of topics related to information systems and Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
Specific topics of interest focus on, but are not limited to the following:
• Descriptions of specific Earth information systems as well as their application for studying key environmental issues.
• Methodological and technical issues related to Earth information systems development, deployment, operation, and maintenance.
• Common challenges and “best practices” related to infrastructure and capacity development and maintenance for Earth observation purposes.
• Issues related to data collection and sharing for environmental applications.
• Success stories and “lessons learned” about how infrastructure, capacity, and partnerships may be developed and maintained successfully for Earth observation purposes by countries or organizations.
The theme issue is scheduled for the first quarter of 2010. We seek to publish articles from all regions of the globe.
We welcome articles about programs, projects, organizations, examples of interdisciplinary and/or cross-regional research latest discoveries, and unusual findings. We also publish opinion essays, book and art reviews. Submissions must be in English. Submit to Guest Editor John Kostelnick at jkostelnick@ilstu.edu.
Please consult the Writer’s Guidelines for further information.
Important dates: Queries to the editors may be sent at any time (jkostelnick@ilstu.edu). Submission of original articles, letters, opinions, book and art for review begins December 1, 2009.
Publication: All accepted contributions will be published on-line at www.Earthzine.org in the first quarter of 2010 and will be freely accessible to the public.
Information:
Earthzine website: http://www.earthzine.org
Writer’s Guidelines: http://www.earthzine.org/about-2/writers-guidelines
GEO/GEOSS website: http://www.earthobservations.org
Editor-in-Chief:
Paul E. Racette, DSc
Managing Editor:
Maeve Hickok, MA
Guest Editor for Earth Information Systems/Capacity Building :
John C. Kostelnick, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Illinois State University
Department of Geography-Geology
Campus Box 4400
Normal, IL 61790-4400
E-mail: jkostelnick@ilstu.edu
Earthzine is chiefly staffed by volunteers. Please join us! Check out the Contributions page. Volunteer and make a difference.
NASA Daily Image
Remnant of a Supernova
Vital clues about the devastating ends to the lives of massive stars can be found by studying the aftermath of their explosions. In its more than twelve years of science operations, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory has studied many of these supernova remnants sprinkled across the galaxy. The latest example of this important investigation is Chandra's new image of the supernova remnant known as G350.1-0.3. This stellar debris field is located some 14,700 light years from the Earth toward the center of the Milky Way. Evidence from Chandra and from ESA's XMM-Newton telescope suggest that a compact object within G350.1+0.3 may be the dense core of the star that exploded. The position of this likely neutron star, seen by the arrow pointing to "neutron star" in the inset image, is well away from the center of the X-ray emission. If the supernova explosion occurred near the center of the X-ray emission then the neutron star must have received a powerful kick in the supernova explosion. Data suggest this supernova remnant, as it appears in the image, is 600 and 1,200 years old. If the estimated location of the explosion is correct, this means the neutron star has been moving at a speed of at least 3 million miles per hour since the explosion. Another intriguing aspect of G350.1-0.3 is its unusual shape. Many supernova remnants are nearly circular, but G350.1-0.3 is strikingly asymmetrical as seen in the Chandra data in this image (gold). Infrared data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope (light blue) also trace the morphology found by Chandra. Astronomers think that this bizarre shape is due to stellar debris field expanding into a nearby cloud of cold molecular gas. The age of 600-1,200 years puts the explosion that created G350.1-0.3 in the same time frame as other famous supernovas that formed the Crab and SN 1006 supernova remnants. However, it is unlikely that anyone on Earth would have seen the explosion because of the obscuring gas and dust that lies along our line of sight to the remnant. These results appeared in the April 10, 2011 issue of The Astrophysical Journal. Image Credits: X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO/I. Lovchinsky et al; IR: NASA/JPL-Caltech