Design of a low-cost microcontroller-based lightning monitoring device

Lightning data is not only important for environment and weather monitoring but also for safety purposes. A device that monitors and keeps track of occurrences of lightning strikes has been developed. A communication interface is established between the sensors, data logging circuit and the microcontroller. The digital outputs of the lightning...

Stormwater quality characteristics in (Dutch) urban areas and performance of settlement basins

Stormwaters, flowing into storm sewers, are known to significantly increase the annual pollutant loads entering urban receiving waters and this results in significant degradation of the receiving water quality. Knowledge of the characteristics of stormwater pollution enables urban planners to incorporate the most appropriate stormwater...

Double-ended calibration of fiber-optic Raman spectra distributed temperature sensing data

Over the past five years, Distributed Temperature Sensing (DTS) along fiber optic cables using Raman backscattering has become an important tool in the environmental sciences. Many environmental applications of DTS demand very accurate temperature measurements, with typical RMSE < 0.1 K. The aim of this paper is to describe and clarify the...

Monitoring the extent of flooding: Based on a case study in Queensland

“Of droughts and flooding rains” (Dorothea Mackellar 1885-1968, “My Country”). The recent flooding in Queensland affected rural areas, mines, towns and cities including the state capital. Tracking such an event on a day-by day basis raises practical and theoretical issues. While this year’s floods captured world headlines, there is a major...