News & Press

CDT Geospatial Systems - fully funded places available

Tue, 8 Mar 2022 15:50:00 GMT

The EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Geospatial Systems is currently accepting applications for a second round of applications to join its multi-disciplinary cohort of students in September 2022.

Supported by over 40 industry partners, Newcastle University and the University of Nottingham are offering a fully funded, 4 year dual masters and doctoral programme which consists of an MRes in Geospatial Data Science (year 1) and a PhD in Geospatial Systems (years 2-4). The award covers fees, monthly stipend and a generous research training support grant.

Students can apply to the programme with their own research vision. During the first year of the programme, the MRes in Geospatial Data Science will provide training and introduce research teams across both Newcastle University and University of Nottingham which will help shape your project. Research currently being undertaken by the multi-disciplinary group of students can be found in the attached CDT brochure.

If students do not yet have your own research topic, they welcome applications from students to one of our specific research topics.

Full details on how to apply can be found on their website here.

If you have any questions about the programme or the CDT in general, please don’t hesitate to email geospatial.cdt@newcastle.ac.uk

Applications are open until 18th April 2022.

EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Geospatial Systems – 3x 4-year PhD Studentships

Wed, 27 May 2020 11:28:39 GMT

EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Geospatial Systems – 3x 4-year PhD Studentships
Closing date: Tuesday 30th June 2020. On-line interviews will be held during July 2020

University of Nottingham and Newcastle University, supported by Ordnance Survey, invites high-quality applications from UK and EU nationals for three fully funded 4-year (1+3) PhDs in the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) in Geospatial Systems for September 2020 entry.

The CDT will equip students with advanced knowledge and skills in geospatial data science and its application within interdisciplinary PhD research and the geospatial industries, leading to MRes (year 1) and PhD (year 4) qualifications.

Overview
The Geospatial Systems CDT will deliver a world-leading generation of engineers, scientists and practitioners trained in geospatial data science and its application within interdisciplinary PhD research on smart cities, urban and infrastructure resilience, spatial mobility (transport), energy systems, sustainable spatial planning, structural monitoring, social inclusion and healthy living, environmental applications, and the translation of geospatial methods to global challenges.

When studying with the CDT, students undertake a four year (1+3) PhD. In year 1 they will study towards an MRes in Geospatial Data Science and receive specialist joint training in spatial data capture, management, analysis, statistics, modelling and visualisation, along with the new computing technology and methods that are transforming the use of geospatial data. While in years 2 to 4 students will undertake their PhD research project. During their time with the CDT, all students engage with a range of CDT-wide cohort-based activities and Industry-informed training on Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI). Find out more here: https://research.ncl.ac.uk/geospatial-systems/

Benefits of joining our programme:
• A joint PhD programme fully integrated between two leading universities;
• A supportive cohort environment;
• Direct access to experts from industry;
• A substantive research and training support grant (RTSG) in addition to full fees and tax-free stipend for the 4-year duration of the training;
• Specialist enterprise and Responsible Research and Innovation training;
• Access to world-leading facilities, training and support from additional partner institutions;
• A commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion. This will be at the heart of each of our CDT, ensuring flexibility in all activities so that CDT participants with caring and family responsibilities are able to participate fully.

How to Apply
• Applying to Nottingham: in the MyNottingham portal, select ‘Apply for a new course’ and follow instructions on Nottingham’s Postgraduate Study page. Select ‘PhD in Engineering Surveying and Space Geodesy’ as programme of study. You are required to quote the reference ‘ENG1266’. Please also quote this reference in your covering letter. In addition, you must ensure that you name, Stuart Marsh, when asked to name a supervisor on your application

• Applying to Newcastle: in the postgraduate application system, ‘Create a new account’. Enter 4881F as the programme code in the programme of study tab, select ‘MRes Geospatial Data Science’ as the programme of study, and enter GEO20-01 as the studentship code in the studentship / partnership reference box. The relevant studentship code should also be quoted in your covering letter.

Important Documents: as part of an application at Nottingham or Newcastle, you are required to attach:
• A covering letter which includes a 500 word statement on why you are interested in applying to study geospatial data science, and how your interests and experience relate to the CDT;
• A full curriculum vitae;
• Officially certified degree transcripts and certificates;
• If English is not your first language, a copy of your English language qualifications;
• Signed copies of your references on letter headed paper (these can be in PDF format).

Eligibility Criteria
The successful candidate will have a minimum of a 2:1 degree in Engineering, Geographical Sciences, Computing or Mathematics or related disciplines. is the competition is open to UK and/or EU applicants.
Thanks to support from Ordnance Survey, GB’s national mapping agency, we are able to offer at least one fully-funded studentship to an EU national. In this case, research must align with Ordnance Survey research priorities, see:
https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/business-government/innovation/research/doctoral

Contact
For general CDT and application enquiries email: geospatial.cdt@ncl.ac.uk. Specific enquiries to or Professor Stuart Marsh (Nottingham: Stuart.Marsh@nottingham.ac.uk) or Professor Jon Mills (Newcastle: jon.mills@newcastle.ac.uk) .

OS-funded PhD at Nottingham in the Geospatial Systems CDT

Fri, 21 Jun 2019 14:54:49 GMT

PhD on 3D Data Fusion of Complex Environments in the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Geospatial Systems funded by Ordnance Survey
Deadline: Monday 8th July

The EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) in Geospatial Systems invites high-quality applications for 1 award of a 4-year PhD studentship in the area of 3D data fusion of complex environments. This will start September 2019, be sponsored by the Ordnance Survey and run for 4 years at the University of Nottingham. They are looking to recruit a graduate from a wide range of backgrounds that could include Engineering, Geographical/Environmental sciences, Mathematics, Computer Science and related disciplines.

The PhD on 3D data fusion for complex environments will develop novel approaches to fusion of 3D geospatial data, from traditional airborne photogrammetry but using oblique cameras, to high- and low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), vehicle-mounted roadside survey vans, and the streams of data from connected and autonomous vehicles, through to indoor mapping technologies. The aim of this project is to explore different requirements for 3D data from different application sectors and use this to drive research into a flexible framework to manage and integrate 3D data from different sources. Ordnance Survey will supply data, use cases and research support. Students will have an opportunity to undertake a placement within Ordnance Survey of between 1 and 3 months, during the PhD, and they will also have the opportunity to attend the Ordnance Survey PhD workshop events.

The Geospatial Systems CDT will help deliver a world leading generation of engineers, scientists and practitioners in geospatial data science and its applications within interdisciplinary PhD research into smart cities, urban and infrastructure resilience, spatial mobility (transport), energy systems, sustainable spatial planning, structural monitoring, social inclusion and healthy living, environmental applications and the translation of geospatial methods to meet global challenges. In year 1 students will receive joint training between Nottingham and Newcastle Universities (the two partners in the CDT) in spatial data capture, management, analysis, statistics, modelling and visualisation, along with the new computing technology and methods that are transforming the uses of geospatial data. In years 2 to 4 students will undertake their own PhD research project, as well as benefiting from a range of CDT-wide, cohort-based activities and Industry-informed training on Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI).

The award is available to UK/EU applicants only. Depending on how you meet the EPSRC’s eligibility criteria, you may be entitled to a full or a partial award. They are looking for a wide range of applicants who have a minimum of a 2:1 degree in Engineering, Geographical/Environmental Sciences, Mathematics, Computer Sciences or related disciplines. Full UK/EU fees (eligibility criteria applies to EU students) and an annual living allowance of £15,009 (awarded at the 2019/20 UKRI rate) are provided. A Research Training grant (that provides costs for consumables, travel, conferences), and placement opportunities with Ordnance Survey are also supported.

To apply to Nottingham, select the ‘Apply for a course’ option at the MyNottingham portal and follow the instructions on the University Postgraduate Study page. Please attach a covering letter and CV. In the covering letter, please quote ‘Engineering Surveying and Space Geodesy’ as the reference, mention the CDT and Professor Stuart Marsh, the Nottingham CDT Director. Also state the PhD topic of interest as 3D Data Fusion and describe how your interests and experience relate to the CDT. Attach degree transcripts and certificates and, if English is not your first language, a copy of your English language qualifications.
Find out more by contacting the Nottingham Director of the CDT, Professor Stuart Marsh, or visiting: https://research.ncl.ac.uk/geospatial-systems/

To find out more about the CDT in general please visit the website (research.ncl.ac.uk/geospatial-systems), email geospatialcdt@newcastle.ac.uk or contact the CDT Directors; Professor Stuart Barr (Newcastle: stuart.barr@ncl.ac.uk) or Professor Stuart Marsh (Nottingham: Stuart.Marsh@nottingham.ac.uk).

Total lunar eclipse

Sat, 19 Jan 2019 16:42:03 GMT

Early on Monday 21 January UK will see a total lunar eclipse, also known as a ‘Blood Moon’.

The total lunar eclipse will be visible over most of North and South Americas and parts of west and north Europe. The rest of Europe and Africa will see only the end of the eclipse.

Cloud permitting, all of UK will be able to see every part of the eclipse. The Moon will start to enter the Earth’s shadow at ~0230 GMT (UTC); maximum eclipse will occur at ~0515 and it will end at ~0748.

The best time to see the eclipse will be between 0441 and 0543 GMT. This is the period of totality, where the Moon lies entirely in the Earth’s umbra (full shadow) and will appear red. This is due to the fact that all of the illumination from the Sun has to pass through the Earth’s atmosphere and the longer-wavelength red end of the visible spectrum penetrates the atmosphere better than the violet end.

The last total lunar eclipse was on 27 July 2018. There will be a partial eclipse on 16-17 July 2019 and full eclipses on 10 January and 5 June 2020.

Image from NASA - further details from the Royal Observatory

World Magnetic Model to have unscheduled update

Sun, 13 Jan 2019 08:59:38 GMT

Unpredicted and unpredictable behaviour of the Earth’s magnetic core since 2014 has led to an additional release of the Model.

The World Magnetic Model (WMM) is normally produced jointly by the British Geological Survey (BGS) and the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) at 5-yearly intervals. But unusual magnetic activity has caused them to release an unprecedented second edition of the 2015 issue - WMM2015v2.

BGS explains that, having mapped the field changes that have occurred since 2015, they show that they seem to be related to two phenomena:
- an abrupt unpredictable change called a 'geomagnetic jerk' in 2014-15,
- and an acceleration of flow in the core in the northern hemisphere.

This additional update to the WMM will be used until the next release in December 2019, which will be a best estimate of the likely change in the core field until 2025.

All those using compasses or magnetometers - including smart phone users - should ensure that they, or their device, use this latest model of magnetic variation and dip.

Further details from BGS

Global variability of navigation ability

Tue, 14 Aug 2018 12:51:59 GMT

A fascinating study of how human spatial ability is dependent on age, wealth and gender has been published.

The researchers designed a mobile video game, ‘Sea Hero Quest’, to test spatial navigation ability in over 2.5 million people - sampling populations in every country throughout the world.

They found that:
- Spatial ability of the population of a country is correlated with economic wealth of that country.
- Gender inequality of a country is predictive of gender differences in navigation ability.
- Spatial ability declines across the adult lifespan.

In other words, the richer a country, the better its subjects can navigate; the greater the degree of inequality between males and females, the less is the females’ navigation ability compared with males; and navigation ability decreases with age.

The top 10 countries in spatial navigation ability are listed in the order: Finland, Denmark, New Zealand, Canada, Norway, United States, Australia, Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

The report, Coutrot et al, ‘Global Determinants of Navigation Ability’ was published in Current Biology on 9 August 2018. It can be found at www.cell.com

A Blood Moon

Thu, 26 Jul 2018 17:27:34 GMT

A lunar eclipse will be visible over much of the Earth on 27 July

Most of the Eastern Hemisphere will see part or all of the eclipse - and the entire event will be visible from Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia.

The time of greatest eclipse will be 2021 UTC (2121 BST) on 27 July. Total eclipse - with the moon in the Earth’s full shadow (umbra) will last from 1930 to 2113 UTC (2030 to 2213 BST). There will also be some time before and after when the moon is in the half-shadow (penumbra). Including penumbral time, the eclipse will last for 3h 55m.

The moon will be at its greatest distance from Earth in its elliptical orbit - hence it will appear smaller than usual and the eclipse will last longer than normal. The next lunar eclipse of this length will not occur until 9 June 2123.

Any sunlight that does reach the Moon during the eclipse has to pass through the Earth’s atmosphere, where the longer-wavelength red end of the spectrum penetrates better than the shorter-wavelengths towards violet, which get scattered. Hence the Moon will appear red - a ‘Blood Moon’.

The lunar eclipse coincides with Mars being at its closest point to Earth for 15 years; it should be seen a little lower and to the right of the Moon.

Cloud permitting, the eclipse should be visible from the UK although, with moonrise in London at 2049 BST, the beginning will be missed.

Details from Space.com