Publications, talks, workshops


See also https://spatialised.net for geospatial and research work; and https://toolsfortherevolution.com for some larger scale thoughts. You can also check out code and documentation work at https://gitlab.com/adamsteer

2023

A new method for measuring low density sea ice. A Jupyter notebook describing a novel method for measuring sea ice density, when the sea ice is less dense than the displacement fluid. Developed for samples collected during the Norwegian Nansen Legacy project. The problem is solved by creating a composite material with a known (a small weight) and unknown component (sea ice), then working out the density of the unknown component. https://gitlab.com/adamsteer/aen/-/blob/main/jupyter-notebooks/AeN-ice-density.ipynb

Operational guidance for small drone mapping of drifting sea ice at extreme latitudes. A set of documentation around deploying a small drone in the high Arctic from ships or sea ice to map drifting pack ice, developed in the Norwegian Nansen Legacy Project. It outlines cold weather flight issues, magnetic perturbation, and how we solved them. It also gives some ideas for undertaking risk assessments. https://gitlab.com/adamsteer/aen/-/tree/main/anafi-operations

2022

Nansen Legacy sea ice workshop. A two day workshop delivered on 20-21 October. It was aimed a bringing researchers in multiple disciplines together to discuss / discover data availability, data needs, collaboration opportunities. Co-organised with Stefan Theile (University in Bergen) and Elizabeth Jones (Institute of Marine Research).

I assisted with schedule development and setting the workshop style; and identified / coordinated the code of conduct. In the workshop I convened the first session, coaching on how and why we use a code of conduct; then running an interactive exercise to collaboratively set guidelines on how we implement the code of conduct during the workshop. I also convened sea ice physical properties sessions.

Filling in gaps: fusing high resolution imagery products from remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) and on-ground measurements to understand the spatial distribution of sea ice morphological features at sub-floe scale. A talk delivered at the European Space Agency Living Planet Symposium, Bonn, Germany, June 2022. Slides here: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.19923116.v1

Beyond satellite observations of sea ice. Co-authored work in the Fram Forum 2022 edition, on the complexity of Artic sea ice and the value of field expeditions. https://framsenteret.no/fram-forum/, print: ISSN 1893-5532, online: ISSN 8193-5540

On the shoulders of giants. Co authored work on development of field research techniques. Fram Forum 2022. https://framsenteret.no/fram-forum/, print: ISSN 1893-5532, online: ISSN 8193-5540

Sea ice and snow field techniques. Workshop: in-field bespoke training on sea ice and snow research techniques. Delivered in February 2022 on landfast sea ice in Ramfjorden, near Tromso. My role in workshop preparation was curriculum codesign, safety and logistics management. I delivered safety briefings on site, then taught students on how to design walked survey transects for sea ice; use of electromagnetic induction instruments (geophex GEM-2); use of snow probes (SnowHydro Magnaprobe)

JC3 Winter Gaps 2022: Cruise report. A technical report on the JC3 winter gaps cruise (research voyage) in the Norwegian Nansen Legacy Project, undertaken March 2022. See pages 35 – 40 for the physical science team component. https://doi.org/10.7557/nlrs.6685

Joint Cruise 2-2 2021: Cruise Report. Technical report from the September 2021 Nansen Legacy research voyage into the Arctic Basin. See pages 28 – 32 for the physical science team component. https://doi.org/10.7557/nlrs.6413

Seasonal cruise Q2 2021: Cruise report. Technical report on the Q2 seasonal cruise (research voyage) in the Norwegian Nansen Legacy project, undertaken in May 2021. See pages 10 to 14 for the sea ice physical science team component. https://doi.org/10.7557/nlrs.6689

Seasonal Cruise Q1 2021: Cruise report. Technical report on the Q2 seasonal cruise (research voyage) in the Norwegian Nansen Legacy project, undertaken in March 2021. See pages 9 to 20 for the sea ice physical science team component. https://doi.org/10.7557/nlrs.6464

2021

Ephemeral landscapes. A science communications piece about how the dynamic world of sea ice impacts us – and what we can so easily miss. https://sciencenorway.no/blog-nansen-legacy-project-blog-researchers-zone/ephemeral-landscapes/1916323. Republished in full for the 2021 Nansen Legacy Annual Report (https://doi.org/10.7557/nlrs.6547).

Everything has to have somewhere to live. A science communication piece highlighting that Arctic physical and ecological systems are really just one system. https://sciencenorway.no/blog-nansen-legacy-project-blog-researchers-zone/everything-has-to-have-somewhere-to-live/1835116

Implications of surface flooding on airborne estimates of snow depth on sea ice. A peer-reviewed research article about deep snow on sea ice. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-2819-2021

2020

Fire. A story about how a family navigated an intense wildfire season while living in one of the remote-est parts of south eastern Victoria, Australia. https://toolsfortherevolution.com/fire/

The maps we are, the maps we make. A short self-published essay using ourselves as a metaphor for maps, attempting to draw together our psychologicial, social and technological selves. https://www.spatialised.net/we-map/

Enabling PointsDC – a capability of the Australian Scalable Drone Cloud. A report outlining open source geospatial technologies related to delivering data from drones, and potential architectures for using them. It is a roadmap anyone who wants to exploit massive point clouds can use. https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.12799970.v1

2019

Exploiting PDAL+Entwine in the wild. A talk delivered at FOSS4G 2019 aiming to de-mystify methods for processing massive lidar and other surveys using open source tools. https://adamsteer.github.io/talks/foss4g2019.pdal.entwine/. Video: https://media.ccc.de/v/bucharest-267-exploiting-pdal-entwine-in-the-wild

The PDAL workshop. A professional workshop on using the Point Data Abstraction Library (https://pdal.io) delivered in Bucharest, Romania, at FOSS4G 2019. https://pdal.io/workshop/index.html

Kia ora – the learnings of FOSS4G SotM Oceania. A collaborative talk on gathering the energy of a community to build a conference and then a not-for-profit company to support a community. Delivered in Bucharest, Romania at FOSS4G 2019 Video: https://media.ccc.de/v/bucharest-299-kia-ora-the-learnings-of-foss4g-sotm-oceania

Adventure :: Experience :: Responsibility. An essay on travel, adventure tourism and how we engage with the world. https://toolsfortherevolution.com/adventure-experience-responsibility/

The Good Data Manifesto. A book chapter discussing ethical issues around geospatial data, detailing the FAIRER data principles, and proposing a ‘data goodness’ checklist for data providers and publishers. In Good Data, a book published in the Institute for Network Cultures Theory on Demand series. https://networkcultures.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Good_Data.pdf

2018

The PDAL workshop. A professional workshop teaching the Point Data Abstraction Library (https://pdal.io), delivered in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, at FOSS4G 2018. https://pdal.io/workshop/index.html

Processing and visualising point clouds with the PDAL/Entwine/Potree stack. A workshop teaching some common workflows with the Point Data Abstraction Library. Delivered in Melbourne, Australia at FOSS4G SotM Oceania 2018. https://github.com/adamsteer/f4g-oceania-pdal

Business Penguins. A self-published essay on how homogeneous visual language we employ at work functions to constrain our ability to build diversity, using penguin behaviour as a metaphor. https://www.spatialised.net/business-penguins/

2017

An open, standards-based and flexible point cloud data service. A talk showcasing a method for extracting data products from massive lidar surveys using web based tools. Delivered in Boston, USA, at FOSS4G 2017. Slides here: http://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.27345.02409

An open, interoperable, transdisciplinary approach to point cloud data services .
…using OGC standards and open source software
. A poster showcasing a method for extracting data products from massive lidar surveys using web based tools. Delivered in Vienna, Austria at the general assembly of the European Geophysical Union, 2017. Poster: http://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.24159.66724

What does sea ice do all day? A public talk about how sea ice research impacts our daily lives, and how we work to make sure we make the most of very rare opportunities to gather data. Delivered for the Pint of Science event in Canberra, Australia. Slides: https://adamsteer.github.io/talks/pintofscience2017/

2016

Towards high resolution estimates of East Antarctic pack ice thickness. My doctoral thesis. It introduces sea ice physical and ecological systems, explains why mapping sea ice topography in high resolution is critical to understanding this frozen ocean, and does a lot of engineering work about actually making maps of sea ice with airborne laser scanners, photogrammetry, and ground survey data. It concludes by showing how this intensive approach adds to our understanding, and openly detailing where improvements can be made. See: https://eprints.utas.edu.au/23441/

Estimating small-scale snow depth and ice thickness from total freeboard for East Antarctic sea ice. Chapter 2 of my PhD thesis, as a peer reviewed article discussing modelling snow depths on sea ice using linear regression models derived from field measurements. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2016.04.025

2015

Comparing methods of measuring sea-ice density in the East Antarctic. A peer reviewed analysis of sea ice density, and different ways to measure sea ice density. This is absolutely essential work for estimating sea ice thickness from altimetry. http://dx.doi.org/10.3189/2015AoG69A814