About this tutorial

Educational Objectives

After completing several of the activities in this tutorial, the student:

• will be familiar with the basic concepts of .remote sensing. technology;
• will be able to recognize/interpret some features in satellite images;
• will be able to describe how remote sensing contributes to monitoring the environment.

Content

The material in this tutorial makes use of Canadian examples of environmental monitoring.

Presentation of the Material to Students

Sections 2.1, 2.2 and 2.3 should be carefully examined by the students. Sections 4.1, 4.2, 4.3 are intended as additional reading; Appendices A, B, and C, may be useful resources while working on the activities. The answers are found in Appendix D. The activities in Section 3 are presented in a recommended order.

Level of Difficulty

These activities and exercises are intended for children aged 11 and up. Some of the activities will be more suitable for older children. Length of time required for each activity varies between 5 and 30 minutes.

Format

It is anticipated that this tutorial will be used in a classroom setting. The activities can be completed by students working either individually or in small groups. This tutorial is intended for use as a printed copy.

Considerations Regarding Printing

The tutorial pages should be printed on a colour printer. Please use the best quality colour printer and paper that is available and check the results to ensure that features referred to in the exercises are indeed visible in the printed version.

Prerequisite Knowledge

The student should be familiar with:

• Cartesian co-ordinates (x, y) for referencing locations of features in the imagery;
• the cardinal points of the compass;
• map reading.
• See Appendices for descriptions of Cartesian co-ordinates, points of a compass and the dot grid technique for measuring area.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the following people and organizations for their contributions to this education kit:

• Multimedia Applications Section
• Lingua / Services Momentum for French translation
• Other CCRS contributors: Joanne Ellis, Caroline Forest, Robert Landry, Josée Levesque, Mike Manore, Heather McNairn, Christian Prévost

Details of Activities

Description of activity	Skills development	Time required	Level of difficulty	Extra materials used
3.1 Which is Which? -Becoming familiar with the appearance of features (colour, shape, size, texture, etc.) in satellite imagery	Matching images with a description of features	10 - 15 min	Introductory	None
3.2 Find it! -Becoming familiar with the use of cartesian coordinates and the appearance of features in satellite imagery	Finding and determining the location of features on an image	15 - 20 min	Introductory	Nonen
3.3 (a & b) Measure This -Recognizing features and measuring distances	Measuring distances, feature recognition, determining direction	25 - 30 min	Introductory	String
3.4 Clearcutting in the Forest -Monitoring a logging operation	Aligning an image and a map;measuring area	25 - 30 min	Challenging	Acetate and markers
3.5 Oil Spill Danger -Measuring and monitoring the motion of an oil slick	Measuring area, distance, speed and direction of movement (predicting change over time)	25 - 30 min	Challenging	Acetate and markers
3.6 Crop Types -Identifying crop types, other rural features and assessing flood damage.	Using an interpretation key to match features; position analysis	15 - 20 min	Moderate	None
3.7 Forest Fire -Becoming familiar with the strategies of fighting forest fires	Measuring distances; identifying routes; feature recognition	10 - 15 min	Moderate	Acetate, markers and string
3.8 Navigating a Ship Through Ice -Using a satellite image to navigate a ship through ice	Determine the best route and measure its distance	10 - 15 min	Moderate	String
3.9 You Figure it Out -Interpreting an image with coastal features	Multiple choice questions using image reading skills and contextual logic	20 - 25 min	Challenging	None
3.10 Urban Land Use -Identifying urban land use and colouring a land use map	Recognizing urban features in a satellite image from writtendescriptions	15 - 20 min	Moderate	Markers, or coloured pencils, or crayons
3.11 At a Mine Site -Observing the activity at a mine site using remote sensing imagery	Finding similar features on an image	20 - 30 min	Moderate	None
3.12 A Different Perspective -Matching oblique aerial photographs to corresponding satellite images	Comparing low-altitude oblique views to high-altitude vertical views	10 - 15 min	Challenging	None