{"id":7112,"date":"2015-02-10T12:22:20","date_gmt":"2015-02-10T18:22:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ssec.wisc.edu\/news\/?p=7112"},"modified":"2019-03-05T19:47:37","modified_gmt":"2019-03-05T19:47:37","slug":"remote-sensing-bootcamp-fosters-international-collaboration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ssec.wisc.edu\/news\/articles\/7112","title":{"rendered":"Remote-sensing bootcamp fosters international collaboration"},"content":{"rendered":"
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SSEC scientists Andi Walther (far left) and Denis Botambekov (far right) with three of their pupils at al-Farabi Kazakhstan National University. Credit: Denis Botambekov, CIMSS.<\/p><\/div>\n

A two-week bootcamp led by Space Science and Engineering Center (SSEC) scientists in Almaty, Kazakhstan, last autumn promises to spark new collaborations with some of the nation\u2019s top atmospheric and meteorological researchers.<\/p>\n

Andi Walther and Denis Botambekov, research associates with the NOAA Algorithm Working Group<\/a> for cloud remote sensing at the Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS), were invited by Botambekov\u2019s alma mater, al-Farabi Kazakhstan National University, to lead the bootcamp. They instructed a group of about 15 master\u2019s students, all of whom are studying in fields related to remote sensing and meteorology.<\/p>\n

The bootcamp was part of a special program that the university organizes each year, inviting professors and researchers from overseas to share their expertise and teaching methods, this time, on the fundamentals of satellite remote sensing<\/p>\n

\u201cThe goal is to promote international cooperation,\u201d Walther said, adding that the exchange of expertise was two-sided. \u201cWhile we were there, we talked to different professors about what they are doing, scientifically, to benefit from their experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the final two weeks in November 2014, the pair co-taught labs, seminars, and lectures for four hours each day. Some of the activities mirrored coursework that would be taught at UW-Madison, as CIMSS Director Steve Ackerman, a professor in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, and other SSEC scientists supplied data bundles and materials.<\/p>\n

For example, in one lab exercise, students installed SSEC\u2019s Man-computer Interactive Data Access System (McIDAS) and were given hands-on tasks to complete similar to those in one of Ackerman\u2019s 400-level satellite meteorology courses.<\/p>\n

These were geared toward teaching students how to:<\/p>\n