Interactive Web Maps: Goa Covid-19 Status as on 25/05/2021

Every once in a while we deal with data in the tabular form. Long tables of data are boring, especially when the data in question has some spatial attributes to it. So when I noticed the government website disseminating covid related information using a table it got me thinking, can this be done better? can we tell the covid story more efficiently so that anybody can understand the situation? and so I thought of making an interactive webmap of the covid-19 status in Goa as on 25/5/2021. Not only was I successful in creating one but it was all done using free to use open source tools including QGIS, WebMap plugin, and Git. 

Goa Covid information is available on the government portal at https://www.goa.gov.in/covid-19/. 

The boring form of spatial data presentation

    A better way of presenting Spatial Data.

Check out the interactive webmap below.  You can play around with the point and polygon features to access additional details such as the number of reported active cases, taluka name, place name etc. 

So what do you think? .... webmaps V/s Tables. 

Google Earth Engine: A powerful application for Earth Scientists

Hello Readers!

Have you ever faced the difficulty of downloading a vast amount of satellite data due to slow internet? ever troubled by the limited processing capabilities of your computer system? lack of storage to handle the data? fear not! because now there exists a solution to all these problems-Google Earth Engine is the answer to all your satellite image processing requirements.  

Google Earth Engine is a cloud computing platform to process various kinds of spatial data, especially remote sensing satellite data. One can now access thousands of satellite imagery with just a few lines of code something unimaginable in the last decade is now possible. Thanks to GEE. 

GEE is the go-to tool for anybody seeking to use remote sensing data because of its powerful cloud data processing and its free access and availability of a vast number of datasets. Moreover, there is excellent documentation for one seeking to learn how to use it. With just the basic knowledge of Javascript syntax, one can get started on the platform using javascript API on the google earth engine code editor. There are also several user forums on social media and open access courses where one can find relevant information and help. 

Google Earth Engine Code Editor interface and a simple image classification procedure performed for Betalbatim Village, Salcete Goa showing 5 classics viz. Green: Vegetation, Yellow: Agriculture, Red: Builtup, Blue: Water, White: Bare ground/sand. 

This might seem a bit overwhelming for a newcomer without the knowledge of coding however let me assure you that with each line of successfully executed code your confidence skyrockets. This has been the case with me (a non-programmer). When you realise the potential that this platform holds you will automatically get the motivation to learn.  So if you are somebody who has a desire to find solutions to real-world problems using satellite data on GEE then Introduction to JavaScript for Earth Engine is the place to start with or any basic course in javascript. Once you have a basic knowledge of javascript head over to the GEE documentation to learn how to use this platform. for those who already have a programming background, you can try completing the exercises from this free course material End-to-End Google Earth Engine (Full Course Material). 

Happy learning.

Thank you.