Will is a University of Queensland Amplify Research Fellow and recent ARC DECRA holder (DE190101182). His research aims to bridge scales for remotely sensing dynamic vegetation productivity and health. Will is the Principal Investigator of the CSIRO/TERN-OzFlux Tumbarumba tall forest research site. Now in its 23rd year it is one of Australia’s longest continuously running flux tower sites and rated equal second globally for verification of environmental satellite products [1]. Previously Will held the position of Research Scientist at CSIRO, after commencing as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in 2015.
Will has experience with a range of passive and active remote sensing technologies including combining LiDAR, optical- and thermal-imagery for estimating vegetation structure and function. His current research focuses on scaling observations of sun-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) from leaf to canopy scales at flux tower sites.
Take a look at available Higher Degree student Research Projects in the 'Available Projects' tab
Please also feel free to get in touch with Will to discuss potential collaborations.
[1] Camacho, F., Román, M.O., Nickeson, J., Göttsche, F.-M., Ducanson, L., Sanchez-Azofeifa, G.A., Woodgate, W., Karan, M., Descalzo, L.d.l.M., & Monzo, C.D. (2018). Proposition of CEOS LPV Super Sites for Validation of Biophysical Satellite Products. Paper presented at the ESA LPVE - Land Product Validation and Evolution 2018, ESA/ESRIN, Frascati, Italy. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.10375.50087
Journal Article: Demonstration of a Modular Prototype End-to-End Simulator for Aquatic Remote Sensing Applications
Matthews, Mark W., Dekker, Arnold, Price, Ian, Drayson, Nathan, Pease, Joshua, Antoine, David, Anstee, Janet, Sharp, Robert, Woodgate, William, Phinn, Stuart and Gensemer, Stephen (2023). Demonstration of a Modular Prototype End-to-End Simulator for Aquatic Remote Sensing Applications. Sensors, 23 (18) ARTN 7824, 7824. doi: 10.3390/s23187824
Journal Article: The effect of relative humidity on eddy covariance latent heat flux measurements and its implication for partitioning into transpiration and evaporation
Zhang, Weijie, Jung, Martin, Migliavacca, Mirco, Poyatos, Rafael, Miralles, Diego G., El-Madany, Tarek S., Galvagno, Marta, Carrara, Arnaud, Arriga, Nicola, Ibrom, Andreas, Mammarella, Ivan, Papale, Dario, Cleverly, Jamie R., Liddell, Michael, Wohlfahrt, Georg, Markwitz, Christian, Mauder, Matthias, Paul-Limoges, Eugenie, Schmidt, Marius, Wolf, Sebastian, Brümmer, Christian, Arain, M. Altaf, Fares, Silvano, Kato, Tomomichi, Ardö, Jonas, Oechel, Walter, Hanson, Chad, Korkiakoski, Mika, Biraud, Sébastien ... Nelson, Jacob A. (2023). The effect of relative humidity on eddy covariance latent heat flux measurements and its implication for partitioning into transpiration and evaporation. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 330 109305, 1-11. doi: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2022.109305
Journal Article: A coupled ground heat flux–surface energy balance model of evaporation using thermal remote sensing observations
Bhattacharya, Bimal K., Mallick, Kaniska, Desai, Devansh, Bhat, Ganapati S., Morrison, Ross, Clevery, Jamie R., Woodgate, William, Beringer, Jason, Cawse-Nicholson, Kerry, Ma, Siyan, Verfaillie, Joseph and Baldocchi, Dennis (2022). A coupled ground heat flux–surface energy balance model of evaporation using thermal remote sensing observations. Biogeosciences, 19 (23), 5521-5551. doi: 10.5194/bg-19-5521-2022
(2022–2023) SmartSat CRC
Leaf to landscape: Near-instant vegetation growth and productivity rates
(2019–2023) ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award
Scaling dynamic plant function from leaf to landscape
Doctor Philosophy
Spaceborne LiDAR as a vegetation biomass scaling tool
Doctor Philosophy
Determining the effects of abiotic stress on crop growth development, and yield under different nitrogen applications using remotely sensed data for cotton and wheat.
Doctor Philosophy
Spectral scaling of dynamic plant function
We are looking for someone with good quantitative skills, across numerical analyses and coding to play a key role in a project that will use new forms of satellite image data to monitor and look after the earth’s environments.
The project will develop links to science and space agencies in Australia and globally and provides a career path to a range of options in data analytics in earth observation.
The ideal candidate does not require a background in plant ecology or physiology, but does require strong numerical analysis and coding skills.
The ideal candiate will also have publications that will strengthen their ability to secure a UQ scholarship.
Working Title: Spectral scaling of dynamic plant function
Aim
The broad aim is to establish a more direct link between optical satellite earth observation (EO) data and plant productivity and health monitoring. Optical sensing methods, including the new sun-induced fluorescence (SIF) signal show great promise yet are largely unexplored in Australian conditions. SIF is a photon flux emitted by chlorophyll of plants following absorption of sunlight. The SIF signal, detectable by specialised optical sensors, provides a near-instantaneous proxy for the plants photosynthetic activity - useful for detecting a response to environmental stressors such as water shortage or excess heat.
At present scaling effects of the optical signal from the leaf to canopy are not well understood. Specifically, the aim is to characterise scaling effects caused by plant structure and composition across a subset of Australian ecosystems, both native and agricultural.
Method
Radiative transfer models can be explored that simulate the effect of leaf and canopy structure on the wavelength-dependent radiative fluxes measured by satellites. These models are a powerful tool to understand plant-light interactions from any type of optical sensor.
Significance
Algorithms and methods can be developed to use and analyse newly available Earth Observation data from airborne and satellite platforms to more accurately and reliably map and monitor photosynthesis and plant primary productivity (i.e. CO2 uptake). Remotely sensed data has preferential benefits for extensive, remote and inaccessible Australian landscapes.
Preferred background: strong quantitative skills in physics, maths, signal or image processing. Well-developed scientific programming (e.g. python, R, C).
Scholarship available: Candidate to apply for a competitive UQ PhD scholarship: https://scholarships.uq.edu.au/scholarships-explained
Date available: Currently available.
Work environment: The project will be based in UQ’s world leading Remote Sensing Research Centre (http://www.rsrc.org.au), which is a collaborative group linking research and applied scientists across the university, CSIRO, government agencies, private industry and space agencies. RSRC is a highly supportive environment, and the position will work with staff and students in Joint Remote Sensing Research Program and SmartSAT CRC.
Supervisors: Dr William Woodgate; Prof. Stuart Phinn (UQ)
For more information contact Dr Woodgate (w.woodgate@uq.edu.au)
Demonstration of a Modular Prototype End-to-End Simulator for Aquatic Remote Sensing Applications
Matthews, Mark W., Dekker, Arnold, Price, Ian, Drayson, Nathan, Pease, Joshua, Antoine, David, Anstee, Janet, Sharp, Robert, Woodgate, William, Phinn, Stuart and Gensemer, Stephen (2023). Demonstration of a Modular Prototype End-to-End Simulator for Aquatic Remote Sensing Applications. Sensors, 23 (18) ARTN 7824, 7824. doi: 10.3390/s23187824
Zhang, Weijie, Jung, Martin, Migliavacca, Mirco, Poyatos, Rafael, Miralles, Diego G., El-Madany, Tarek S., Galvagno, Marta, Carrara, Arnaud, Arriga, Nicola, Ibrom, Andreas, Mammarella, Ivan, Papale, Dario, Cleverly, Jamie R., Liddell, Michael, Wohlfahrt, Georg, Markwitz, Christian, Mauder, Matthias, Paul-Limoges, Eugenie, Schmidt, Marius, Wolf, Sebastian, Brümmer, Christian, Arain, M. Altaf, Fares, Silvano, Kato, Tomomichi, Ardö, Jonas, Oechel, Walter, Hanson, Chad, Korkiakoski, Mika, Biraud, Sébastien ... Nelson, Jacob A. (2023). The effect of relative humidity on eddy covariance latent heat flux measurements and its implication for partitioning into transpiration and evaporation. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 330 109305, 1-11. doi: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2022.109305
Bhattacharya, Bimal K., Mallick, Kaniska, Desai, Devansh, Bhat, Ganapati S., Morrison, Ross, Clevery, Jamie R., Woodgate, William, Beringer, Jason, Cawse-Nicholson, Kerry, Ma, Siyan, Verfaillie, Joseph and Baldocchi, Dennis (2022). A coupled ground heat flux–surface energy balance model of evaporation using thermal remote sensing observations. Biogeosciences, 19 (23), 5521-5551. doi: 10.5194/bg-19-5521-2022
Cao, Yanping, Xie, Zunyi, Woodgate, William, Ma, Xuanlong, Cleverly, Jamie, Pang, Yingjun, Qin, Fen and Huete, Alfredo (2022). Ecohydrological decoupling of water storage and vegetation attributed to China’s large-scale ecological restoration programs. Journal of Hydrology, 615 128651, 1-14. doi: 10.1016/j.jhydrol.2022.128651
Mallick, Kaniska, Baldocchi, Dennis, Jarvis, Andrew, Hu, Tian, Trebs, Ivonne, Sulis, Mauro, Bhattarai, Nishan, Bossung, Christian, Eid, Yomna, Cleverly, Jamie, Beringer, Jason, Woodgate, William, Silberstein, Richard, Hinko-Najera, Nina, Meyer, Wayne S., Ghent, Darren, Szantoi, Zoltan, Boulet, Gilles and Kustas, William P. (2022). Insights into the aerodynamic versus radiometric surface temperature debate in thermal-based evaporation modeling. Geophysical Research Letters, 49 (15) e2021GL097568, 1-10. doi: 10.1029/2021GL097568
Liu, C., Calders, K., Meunier, F., Gastellu‐Etchegorry, J. P., Nightingale, J., Disney, M., Origo, N., Woodgate, W. and Verbeeck, H. (2022). Implications of 3D forest stand reconstruction methods for radiative transfer modeling: a case study in the temperate deciduous forest. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 127 (14) e2021JD036175, 1-27. doi: 10.1029/2021jd036175
Extending a canopy reflectance model for mangroves: A case study in south east Queensland, Australia
Niu, Chunyue, Woodgate, William, Phinn, Stuart R., Roelfsema, Chris M. and Su, Yanjun (2022). Extending a canopy reflectance model for mangroves: A case study in south east Queensland, Australia. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 316 108875, 108875. doi: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2022.108875
Beringer, Jason, Moore, Caitlin E., Cleverly, Jamie, Campbell, David I., Cleugh, Helen, De Kauwe, Martin G., Kirschbaum, Miko U. F., Griebel, Anne, Grover, Sam, Huete, Alfredo, Hutley, Lindsay B., Laubach, Johannes, Van Niel, Tom, Arndt, Stefan K., Bennett, Alison C., Cernusak, Lucas A., Eamus, Derek, Ewenz, Cacilia M., Goodrich, Jordan P., Jiang, Mingkai, Hinko‐Najera, Nina, Isaac, Peter, Hobeichi, Sanaa, Knauer, Jürgen, Koerber, Georgia R., Liddell, Michael, Ma, Xuanlong, Macfarlane, Craig, McHugh, Ian D. ... Woodgate, William (2022). Bridge to the future: Important lessons from 20 years of ecosystem observations made by the OzFlux network. Global Change Biology, 28 (11), 3489-3514. doi: 10.1111/gcb.16141
Spectral retrieval of eucalypt leaf biochemical traits by inversion of the fluspect-Cx model
Lamsal, Krishna, Malenovský, Zbyněk, Woodgate, William, Waterman, Melinda, Brodribb, Timothy J. and Aryal, Jagannath (2022). Spectral retrieval of eucalypt leaf biochemical traits by inversion of the fluspect-Cx model. Remote Sensing, 14 (3) 567, 567. doi: 10.3390/rs14030567
Environment-sensitivity functions for gross primary productivity in light use efficiency models
Bao, Shanning, Wutzler, Thomas, Koirala, Sujan, Cuntz, Matthias, Ibrom, Andreas, Besnard, Simon, Walther, Sophia, Šigut, Ladislav, Moreno, Alvaro, Weber, Ulrich, Wohlfahrt, Georg, Cleverly, Jamie, Migliavacca, Mirco, Woodgate, William, Merbold, Lutz, Veenendaal, Elmar and Carvalhais, Nuno (2022). Environment-sensitivity functions for gross primary productivity in light use efficiency models. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 312 108708, 108708. doi: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2021.108708
Pastorello, Gilberto, Trotta, Carlo, Canfora, Eleonora, Chu, Housen, Christianson, Danielle, Cheah, You-Wei, Poindexter, Cristina, Chen, Jiquan, Elbashandy, Abdelrahman, Humphrey, Marty, Isaac, Peter, Polidori, Diego, Reichstein, Markus, Ribeca, Alessio, van Ingen, Catharine, Vuichard, Nicolas, Zhang, Leiming, Amiro, Brian, Ammann, Christof, Arain, M. Altaf, Ardö, Jonas, Arkebauer, Timothy, Arndt, Stefan K., Arriga, Nicola, Aubinet, Marc, Aurela, Mika, Baldocchi, Dennis, Barr, Alan, Beamesderfer, Eric ... Papale, Dario (2021). Author Correction: The FLUXNET2015 dataset and the ONEFlux processing pipeline for eddy covariance data (Scientific Data, (2020), 7, 1, (225), 10.1038/s41597-020-0534-3). Scientific Data, 8 (1) 72, 72. doi: 10.1038/s41597-021-00851-9
Estimating ecosystem maximum light use efficiency based on the water use efficiency principle
Gan, Rong, Zhang, Lu, Yang, Yuting, Wang, Enli, Woodgate, William, Zhang, Yongqiang, Haverd, Vanessa, Kong, Dongdong, Fischer, Tony, Chiew, Francis and Yu, Qiang (2021). Estimating ecosystem maximum light use efficiency based on the water use efficiency principle. Environmental Research Letters, 16 (10) 104032, 104032. doi: 10.1088/1748-9326/ac263b
The role of aerodynamic resistance in thermal remote sensing-based evapotranspiration models
Trebs, Ivonne, Mallick, Kaniska, Bhattarai, Nishan, Sulis, Mauro, Cleverly, Jamie, Woodgate, William, Silberstein, Richard, Hinko-Najera, Nina, Beringer, Jason, Meyer, Wayne S., Su, Zhongbo and Boulet, Gilles (2021). The role of aerodynamic resistance in thermal remote sensing-based evapotranspiration models. Remote Sensing of Environment, 264 112602, 112602. doi: 10.1016/j.rse.2021.112602
Bennett, Alison C., Arndt, Stefan K., Bennett, Lauren T., Knauer, Jürgen, Beringer, Jason, Griebel, Anne, Hinko-Najera, Nina, Liddell, Michael J., Metzen, Daniel, Pendall, Elise, Silberstein, Richard P., Wardlaw, Timothy J., Woodgate, William and Haverd, Vanessa (2021). Thermal optima of gross primary productivity are closely aligned with mean air temperatures across Australian wooded ecosystems. Global Change Biology, 27 (19), 4727-4744. doi: 10.1111/gcb.15760
Zhou, Huimin, Shao, Junjiong, Liu, Huiying, Du, Zhenggang, Zhou, Lingyan, Liu, Ruiqiang, Bernhofer, Christian, Grünwald, Thomas, Dušek, Jiří, Montagnani, Leonardo, Tagesson, Torbern, Black, Thomas Andrew, Jassal, Rachhpal, Woodgate, William, Biraud, Sébastien, Varlagin, Andrej, Mammarella, Ivan, Gharun, Mana, Shekhar, Ankit, Buchmann, Nina, Manco, Antonio, Magliulo, Enzo, Billesbach, Dave, Silberstein, Richard P., Ohta, Takeshi, Yu, Guirui, Chen, Zhi, Zhang, Yiping and Zhou, Xuhui (2021). Relative importance of climatic variables, soil properties and plant traits to spatial variability in net CO2 exchange across global forests and grasslands. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 307 108506, 1-16. doi: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2021.108506
Analysing spectroscopy data using two-step group penalized partial least squares regression
Chang, Le, Wang, Jiali and Woodgate, William (2021). Analysing spectroscopy data using two-step group penalized partial least squares regression. Environmental and Ecological Statistics, 28 (2), 445-467. doi: 10.1007/s10651-021-00496-2
Temperature thresholds of ecosystem respiration at a global scale
Johnston, Alice S. A., Meade, Andrew, Ardö, Jonas, Arriga, Nicola, Black, Andy, Blanken, Peter D., Bonal, Damien, Brümmer, Christian, Cescatti, Alessandro, Dušek, Jiří, Graf, Alexander, Gioli, Beniamino, Goded, Ignacio, Gough, Christopher M., Ikawa, Hiroki, Jassal, Rachhpal, Kobayashi, Hideki, Magliulo, Vincenzo, Manca, Giovanni, Montagnani, Leonardo, Moyano, Fernando E., Olesen, Jørgen E., Sachs, Torsten, Shao, Changliang, Tagesson, Torbern, Wohlfahrt, Georg, Wolf, Sebastian, Woodgate, William, Varlagin, Andrej and Venditti, Chris (2021). Temperature thresholds of ecosystem respiration at a global scale. Nature Ecology and Evolution, 5 (4), 487-494. doi: 10.1038/s41559-021-01398-z
Zhang, Yuan, Bastos, Ana, Maignan, Fabienne, Goll, Daniel, Boucher, Olivier, Li, Laurent, Cescatti, Alessandro, Vuichard, Nicolas, Chen, Xiuzhi, Ammann, Christof, Arain, M. Altaf, Black, T. Andrew, Chojnicki, Bogdan, Kato, Tomomichi, Mammarella, Ivan, Montagnani, Leonardo, Roupsard, Olivier, Sanz, Maria J., Siebicke, Lukas, Urbaniak, Marek, Vaccari, Francesco Primo, Wohlfahrt, Georg, Woodgate, Will and Ciais, Philippe (2020). Modeling the impacts of diffuse light fraction on photosynthesis in ORCHIDEE (v5453) land surface model. Geoscientific Model Development, 13 (11) 5401-2020, 5401-5423. doi: 10.5194/gmd-13-5401-2020
Woodgate, William, van Gorsel, Eva, Hughes, Dale, Suarez, Lola, Jimenez-Berni, Jose and Held, Alex (2020). THEMS: an automated thermal and hyperspectral proximal sensing system for canopy reflectance, radiance and temperature. Plant Methods, 16 (1) 105, 105. doi: 10.1186/s13007-020-00646-w
The FLUXNET2015 dataset and the ONEFlux processing pipeline for eddy covariance data
Pastorello, Gilberto, Trotta, Carlo, Canfora, Eleonora, Chu, Housen, Christianson, Danielle, Cheah, You-Wei, Poindexter, Cristina, Chen, Jiquan, Elbashandy, Abdelrahman, Humphrey, Marty, Isaac, Peter, Polidori, Diego, Ribeca, Alessio, van Ingen, Catharine, Zhang, Leiming, Amiro, Brian, Ammann, Christof, Arain, M Altaf, Ardö, Jonas, Arkebauer, Timothy, Arndt, Stefan K., Arriga, Nicola, Aubinet, Marc, Aurela, Mika, Baldocchi, Dennis, Barr, Alan, Beamesderfer, Eric, Marchesini, Luca Belelli, Bergeron, Onil ... Papale, Dario (2020). The FLUXNET2015 dataset and the ONEFlux processing pipeline for eddy covariance data. Scientific Data, 7 (1) 225. doi: 10.1038/s41597-020-0534-3
Higher than expected CO2 fertilization inferred from leaf to global observations
Haverd, Vanessa, Smith, Benjamin, Canadell, Josep G., Cuntz, Matthias, Mikaloff‐Fletcher, Sara, Farquhar, Graham, Woodgate, William, Briggs, Peter R. and Trudinger, Cathy M. (2020). Higher than expected CO2 fertilization inferred from leaf to global observations. Global Change Biology, 26 (4), 2390-2402. doi: 10.1111/gcb.14950
Song, Rui, Muller, Jan-Peter, Kharbouche, Said, Yin, Feng, Woodgate, William, Kitchen, Mark, Roland, Marilyn, Arriga, Nicola, Meyer, Wayne, Koerber, Georgia, Bonal, Damien, Burban, Benoit, Knohl, Alexander, Siebicke, Lukas, Buysse, Pauline, Loubet, Benjamin, Leonardo, Montagnani, Lerebourg, Christophe and Gobron, Nadine (2020). Validation of space-based albedo products from upscaled tower-based measurements over heterogeneous and homogeneous landscapes. Remote Sensing, 12 (5), 833. doi: 10.3390/rs12050833
Woodgate, W., Suarez, L., van Gorsel, E., Cernusak, L. A., Dempsey, R., Devilla, R., Held, A., Hill, M. J. and Norton, A. J. (2019). tri-PRI: a three band reflectance index tracking dynamic photoprotective mechanisms in a mature eucalypt forest. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 272-273, 187-201. doi: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2019.03.020
Song, Rui, Muller, Jan-Peter, Kharbouche, Said and Woodgate, William (2019). Intercomparison of surface albedo retrievals from MISR, MODIS, CGLS using tower and upscaled tower measurements. Remote Sensing, 11 (6) 644, 1-20. doi: 10.3390/rs11060644
Leaf and wood classification framework for terrestrial LiDAR point clouds
Vicari, Matheus B., Disney, Mathias, Wilkes, Phil, Burt, Andrew, Calders, Kim and Woodgate, William (2019). Leaf and wood classification framework for terrestrial LiDAR point clouds. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 10 (5), 680-694. doi: 10.1111/2041-210x.13144
Haverd, Vanessa, Smith, Benjamin, Nieradzik, Lars, Briggs, Peter R., Woodgate, William, Trudinger, Cathy M., Canadell, Josep G. and Cuntz, Matthias (2018). A new version of the CABLE land surface model (Subversion revision r4601) incorporating land use and land cover change, woody vegetation demography, and a novel optimisation-based approach to plant coordination of photosynthesis. Geoscientific Model Development, 11 (7), 2995-3026. doi: 10.5194/gmd-11-2995-2018
Calders, Kim, Origo, Niall, Disney, Mathias, Nightingale, Joanne, Woodgate, William, Armston, John and Lewis, Philip (2018). Variability and bias in active and passive ground-based measurements of effective plant, wood and leaf area index. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 252, 231-240. doi: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2018.01.029
Pfeifer, Marion, Gonsamo, Alemu, Woodgate, William, Cayuela, Luis, Marshall, Andrew R., Ledo, Alicia, Paine, Timothy C. E., Marchant, Rob, Burt, Andrew, Calders, Kim, Courtney-Mustaphi, Colin, Cuni-Sanchez, Aida, Deere, Nicolas J., Denu, Dereje, de Tanago, Jose Gonzalez, Hayward, Robin, Lau, Alvaro, Macía, Manuel J., Olivier, Pieter I., Pellikka, Petri, Seki, Hamidu, Shirima, Deo, Trevithick, Rebecca, Wedeux, Beatrice, Wheeler, Charlotte, Munishi, Pantaleo K. T., Martin, Thomas, Mustari, Abdul and Platts, Philip J. (2018). Tropical forest canopies and their relationships with climate and disturbance: results from a global dataset of consistent field-based measurements. Forest Ecosystems, 5 (1) 7. doi: 10.1186/s40663-017-0118-7
Woodgate, William, Armston, John D., Disney, Mathias, Suarez, Lola, Jones, Simon D., Hill, Michael J., Wilkes, Phil and Soto-Berelov, Mariela (2017). Validating canopy clumping retrieval methods using hemispherical photography in a simulated Eucalypt forest. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 247, 181-193. doi: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2017.07.027
Woodgate, William, Armston, John D., Disney, Mathias, Jones, Simon D., Suarez, Lola, Hill, Michael J., Wilkes, Phil and Soto-Berelov, Mariela (2016). Quantifying the impact of woody material on leaf area index estimation from hemispherical photography using 3D canopy simulations. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 226-227, 1-12. doi: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2016.05.009
Vegetation indices for mapping canopy foliar nitrogen in a mixed temperate forest
Wang, Zhihui, Wang, Tiejun, Darvishzadeh, Roshanak, Skidmore, Andrew K., Jones, Simon, Suarez, Lola, Woodgate, William, Heiden, Uta, Heurich, Marco and Hearne, John (2016). Vegetation indices for mapping canopy foliar nitrogen in a mixed temperate forest. Remote Sensing, 8 (6) 491. doi: 10.3390/rs8060491
Wilkes, Phil, Jones, Simon D., Suarez, Lola, Haywood, Andrew, Mellor, Andrew, Woodgate, William, Soto-Berelov, Mariela and Skidmore, Andrew K. (2015). Using discrete-return airborne laser scanning to quantify number of canopy strata across diverse forest types. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 7 (6), 700-712. doi: 10.1111/2041-210x.12510
Woodgate, William, Disney, Mathias, Armston, John D., Jones, Simon D., Suarez, Lola, Hill, Michael J., Wilkes, Phil, Soto-Berelov, Mariela, Haywood, Andrew and Mellor, Andrew (2015). An improved theoretical model of canopy gap probability for Leaf Area Index estimation in woody ecosystems. Forest Ecology and Management, 358, 303-320. doi: 10.1016/j.foreco.2015.09.030
Understanding the effects of als pulse density for metric retrieval across diverse forest types
Wilkes, Phil, Jones, Simon D., Suarez, Lola, Haywood, Andrew, Woodgate, William, Soto-Berelov, Mariela, Mellor, Andrew and Skidmore, Andrew K. (2015). Understanding the effects of als pulse density for metric retrieval across diverse forest types. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, 81 (8), 625-635. doi: 10.14358/PERS.81.8.625
Woodgate W., Jones S.D., Suarez L., Hill M.J., Armston, John D, Wilkes P., Soto-Berelov M., Haywood, Andrew and Mellor, Andrew (2015). Understanding the variability in ground-based methods for retrieving canopy openness, gap fraction, and leaf area index in diverse forest systems. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 205, 83-95. doi: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2015.02.012
Wilkes, Phil, Jones, Simon D., Suarez, Lola, Mellor, Andrew, Woodgate, William, Soto-Berelov, Mariela, Haywood, Andrew and Skidmore, Andrew K. (2015). Mapping forest canopy height across large areas by upscaling ALS estimates with freely available satellite data. Remote Sensing, 7 (9), 12563-12587. doi: 10.3390/rs70912563
The impact of sensor characteristics for obtaining accurate ground-based measurements of LAI
Woodgate, William, Disney, Mathias, Armston, John, Jones, Simon, Suarez, Lola, Hill, Michael, Wilkes, Phillip, Soto-Berelov, Mariela, Haywood, Andrew and Mellor, Andrew (2013). The impact of sensor characteristics for obtaining accurate ground-based measurements of LAI. 2013 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium, Melbourne, Australia, 21-26 July 2013. Piscataway, NJ USA: The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. doi: 10.1109/IGARSS.2013.6723226
(2022–2023) SmartSat CRC
Leaf to landscape: Near-instant vegetation growth and productivity rates
(2019–2023) ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award
Scaling dynamic plant function from leaf to landscape
Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor
Other advisors:
Spaceborne LiDAR as a vegetation biomass scaling tool
Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor
Other advisors:
Determining the effects of abiotic stress on crop growth development, and yield under different nitrogen applications using remotely sensed data for cotton and wheat.
Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor
Other advisors:
Note for students: The possible research projects listed on this page may not be comprehensive or up to date. Always feel free to contact the staff for more information, and also with your own research ideas.
Spectral scaling of dynamic plant function
We are looking for someone with good quantitative skills, across numerical analyses and coding to play a key role in a project that will use new forms of satellite image data to monitor and look after the earth’s environments.
The project will develop links to science and space agencies in Australia and globally and provides a career path to a range of options in data analytics in earth observation.
The ideal candidate does not require a background in plant ecology or physiology, but does require strong numerical analysis and coding skills.
The ideal candiate will also have publications that will strengthen their ability to secure a UQ scholarship.
Working Title: Spectral scaling of dynamic plant function
Aim
The broad aim is to establish a more direct link between optical satellite earth observation (EO) data and plant productivity and health monitoring. Optical sensing methods, including the new sun-induced fluorescence (SIF) signal show great promise yet are largely unexplored in Australian conditions. SIF is a photon flux emitted by chlorophyll of plants following absorption of sunlight. The SIF signal, detectable by specialised optical sensors, provides a near-instantaneous proxy for the plants photosynthetic activity - useful for detecting a response to environmental stressors such as water shortage or excess heat.
At present scaling effects of the optical signal from the leaf to canopy are not well understood. Specifically, the aim is to characterise scaling effects caused by plant structure and composition across a subset of Australian ecosystems, both native and agricultural.
Method
Radiative transfer models can be explored that simulate the effect of leaf and canopy structure on the wavelength-dependent radiative fluxes measured by satellites. These models are a powerful tool to understand plant-light interactions from any type of optical sensor.
Significance
Algorithms and methods can be developed to use and analyse newly available Earth Observation data from airborne and satellite platforms to more accurately and reliably map and monitor photosynthesis and plant primary productivity (i.e. CO2 uptake). Remotely sensed data has preferential benefits for extensive, remote and inaccessible Australian landscapes.
Preferred background: strong quantitative skills in physics, maths, signal or image processing. Well-developed scientific programming (e.g. python, R, C).
Scholarship available: Candidate to apply for a competitive UQ PhD scholarship: https://scholarships.uq.edu.au/scholarships-explained
Date available: Currently available.
Work environment: The project will be based in UQ’s world leading Remote Sensing Research Centre (http://www.rsrc.org.au), which is a collaborative group linking research and applied scientists across the university, CSIRO, government agencies, private industry and space agencies. RSRC is a highly supportive environment, and the position will work with staff and students in Joint Remote Sensing Research Program and SmartSAT CRC.
Supervisors: Dr William Woodgate; Prof. Stuart Phinn (UQ)
For more information contact Dr Woodgate (w.woodgate@uq.edu.au)