Professor Kirk Martinez, from the School of Electronics and Computer Science (ECS), is monitoring glacier behaviour through custom-built sensor networks thanks to funding from National Geographic.

The Glacsweb project, which is co-directed by Professor Jane Hart from the School of Geography and Environmental Science, aims to tell the stories of the Fjallsjökull and Breiðamerkurjökull glaciers.

“Glaciers all over the world are retreating, but the rate they do so is dependent on numerous factors,â€? Jane explains. “These adjacent glaciers in Iceland are retreating at different rates and both have rapidly growing lakes, which threaten to cover the whole glacier front, and affect their stability.

“Through our unique connected real-time GPS developed in ECS, we hope to determine what is controlling the glacier velocity, the rate of lake growth, how this growth is affecting ice retreat and how we can record the shrinking terrestrial marginal geomorphology before it is submerged.â€? In a recent field trip, researchers deployed sensors onto the different parts of the glaciers to provide daily data. Ground penetrating radar was also used to understand water content, while drone photography surveyed the glacier and time-lapse cameras were set up to visually record changes. “Data is coming in steadily and we aim to make a two-year comparative record of ice velocity from both glaciers, related to temperature, rainfall and discharge to better understand patterns of meltwater flow through the glacier and its relationship with speed-up events throughout the year,â€? Kirk says.

Glacsweb’s unique dGPS system uses just a fiftieth of the power of traditional dGPS recordings, opening the possibility of year-round monitoring. “Traditional dGPS systems are expensive and data is normally stored on a memory card and downloaded manually months later,â€? Kirk explains. “We have designed a lower cost real-time kinematic dGPS so that more sites can be monitored for the same cost. It also means the loss of one unit in a glacier has a reduced financial impact.

“Our system automatically provides location measurements from synchronised dGPS units, which wait for a static RTK fix and then sleep between sessions. The readings are sent once per day to a web server via the Iridium satellite network, allowing the system to operate anywhere in the world. The fixes are accurate to around 2cm and they take less than two minutes to acquire, with only 50 bytes to transmit compared to hundreds of kBytes with traditional dGPS recordings. The systems use a low power Arm-based computer running MicoPython and a small solar panel to recharge the battery.â€?

The technology has the potential to monitor other remote environments and is already part of other Southampton research into the use of the Internet of Things (IoT) in environmental sensor networks to understand the response of the environment to global warming.

You can find out more about the Glacsweb team’s recent field trip to Iceland through the project blog, or click here to view time-lapse footage of the Fjallsjökull glacier.

Machine Intelligence experts demonstrated the latest advances from revolutionary new technologies in a packed showcase event at the University of Southampton.

A distinguished panel of AI pioneers and government chiefs discussed the research field’s expected impact on the UK economy and the necessary strategies to fulfil this potential at the all-day event, hosted by the University’s Centre for Machine Intelligence (CMI).

Machine Intelligence, which includes the development of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning and Autonomous Systems, is using science to build a safer and smarter society. Researchers from Southampton’s School of Electronics and Computer Science (ECS) are leaders in several pioneering live projects and outlined the latest progress before an audience of around 200 industry attendees, government representatives and academic peers on Friday 26th October.

Dialogue in the afternoon panel session evaluated a forecast from a recent PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report that UK GDP growth of 10.3%, equal to £232 billion, will be directly attributable to the impact of AI on the economy between 2017 and 2030.

Professor Dame Wendy Hall, Southampton’s Regius Professor of Computer Science and co-chair of a government review of the country’s AI capabilities, said: “The AI technology that is having an impact today was started 20 to 30 years ago at universities. We must now be thinking decades ahead and funding innovative lines of research to make new leaps forward.â€?

Liam Maxwell, National Technology Advisor to the UK Government, Deborah Fish, from the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) AI Lab, Stephen Hennigan, from The Office for AI, and Professor Tim Norman, Head of Southampton’s Agents, Interaction and Complexity Research Group, also contributed to the panel.

Presentation sessions on CMI research at the showcase included topics exploring the unification of humans, machines and society, the development of machines that can learn and see, plus the creation of responsible robots that walk, fly and dive.

Attendees were presented over 40 student posters and demos, including a 3D-printed drone and deep learning computer vision algorithms.

ECS at Southampton has been at the centre of Machine Intelligence research activities for more than 20 years and has generated over £50 million of funding. The School employs over 130 academics, researchers and students working on the topics of AI, Robotics and Machine Learning. The CMI will continue this strong history as it creates a platform for industry-funded Masters and PhD studentships and facilitates centres of excellence in a number of AI-driven applications.

Professor Bashir Al-Hashimi CBE has welcomed academia and industry’s commitment to embrace racial diversity in an interview marking Black History Month for the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng).

The Arm Professor of Computer Engineering, from the University of Southampton's School of Electronics and Computer Science, is one of over a dozen prominent black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) engineers who are sharing their stories this month in an online diversity series.

“I am pleased to see more and more high-tech companies embracing racial diversity through BAME post holders in key executive roles,â€? he says. “Whilst Black History Month provides a welcome opportunity to celebrate past achievements, it also enables us to consider next steps to embed a more inclusive, equal and racially-diverse culture at our institution.â€?

The University of Southampton signed the Equality Challenge Unit’s Race Equality Charter (REC) in 2016 and Bashir is leading the institution’s forthcoming submission for a Bronze Award. The University is committed to supporting equality and diversity for staff and students in higher education and invited widespread participation in the important discussion through an inaugural REC event on Thursday 18th October.

A guide to Black History Month events taking place across Hampshire, marking the 70th anniversary of the Windrush generation, is available to download on the University website.

Bashir is an Arm Professor of Computer Engineering with a worldwide reputation for research into energy efficient and reliable embedded systems. Earlier this year, he was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for his services to engineering and industry.