AIPG/AWG Luncheon Speaker - 7 April 2009- Michelle LaRue - University of Minnesota, Antarctic Geospatial Information Center

 Abstract: Antartica  
 
The talk will be about AGIC's two-faceted role in Antarctic logistics and science, and how we provide maps, geospatial data and analysis, support, and software solutions to the international Antarctic community. Because accurate maps and good ground control are lacking in Antarctica, AGIC conducted field work this past season in the McMurdo Dry Valleys to gather ground control points. Our data will be used to create updated and accurate maps of the Dry Valleys, as well as provide accurate high-resolution satellite imagery, which is necessary for geospatial analysis, visualization, and planning efforts. Future goals of AGIC include expanding our expertise beyond the Dry Valleys and collaborating on integrative science across the continent.
 
 
Bio

Michelle LaRue is originally from Hudson, Wisconsin and attended Minnesota State University Mankato, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in biology. During her undergraduate experience, Michelle was an intern for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and worked on deer population and habitat research, which propelled her to a graduate program at Southern Illinois University. In southern Illinois, Michelle’s research focused on predicting cougar habitat in the Midwest, and using GIS as a tool to answer ecological questions. Since graduating with a master’s degree in zoology in 2007, Michelle spent some time on the East coast, working part time for both the University of Maryland and a forest inventory company in West Virginia. In late 2007, Michelle moved back to Minnesota, where she now works for the Antarctic Geospatial Information Center at the University of Minnesota. When she’s not hiking on Ross Island or in the Dry Valleys in Antarctica, Michelle spends most of her time as a geospatial analyst staring at satellite imagery, collaborating and discussing analysis with scientists around the world, and training undergraduate students. Michelle’s research interests include conservation, spatial ecology, and using GIS as a tool to facilitate an understanding of our changing world.

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