Tessera
Folgen

Andrew Fleming

@ahfleming.bsky.social

I am Head of MAGIC (Mapping and Geographic Information Centre) at the British Antarctic Survey. All things spatial - especially in cold places.

21 Posts97 Follower92 Folgt
Mapping and Geographic Information Centre@magic.bas.ac.uk · last yr.

We've been busy on a new project making polygon boundaries for place names, using Alexander Island as a case study. Creating polygons for Antarctic names is about more than cartographic precision. It’s about improving how we understand, search, & use data in one of Earth’s most remote environments.

An in-progress screenshot of two polygon boundaries in northern Alexander Island - the boundaries are for the Rouen Mountains and Havre Mountains. The map contains a hillshade, and place name locations are displayed with red points.
Mapping and Geographic Information Centre@magic.bas.ac.uk · last yr.

A few months ago, we surveyed Rothera Point using our fixed-wing eBee-X UAV. We've now processed the data and produced this beautiful, orthorectified mosaic, as well as a Digital Elevation Model. We carry out these surveys every year, allowing all of BAS to work with current and accurate data!

An image of Rothera Research Station, Rothera Point, on Adelaide Island. There is a bright blue building in the centre of the image which is the new Discovery Building. You can also see patches of snow on the point, and there are small icebergs floating in the surrounding water.A zoomed in portion of the image, showing the northern end of the runway and the hangar. A white and red plane can also be seen, parked next to the hangar.A zoomed in photo of the plane. The plane is red and white. It is possible to see skis in front of it, probably removed from the plane as it continues its journey north away from Antarctica.
Mapping and Geographic Information Centre@magic.bas.ac.uk · last yr.

If you are at #EGU25 this week, there are a lot of people from BAS to say hello to. 👋 Come and check out our poster, presenting an update to Antarctic rock outcrop, at X5. The data has been extracted from Copernicus Sentinel-2 imagery & provides a much needed update in terms of accuracy & currency!

An image of a person stood in front of a large poster at the EGU conference in Vienna. The title of the poster is "Improving Antarctic Topography: Utilizing Pre-Trained Models for Rock Outcrop Updates".
Andrew Fleming@ahfleming.bsky.social · last yr.

This iceberg has a long and varied history. I’m not betting against it hanging around for a while yet. 😉

Mapping and Geographic Information Centre@magic.bas.ac.uk · last yr.

The world's largest iceberg, A23a, appears to have grounded close to South Georgia. We've been monitoring and mapping this berg for many years now and we're watching closely to see what it might do next! These maps show its route since 1986 and the latest position to the SW of South Georgia ❄️🐧 1/3

A map of the recent positions of iceberg A23a from 17th Jan - 3rd March 2025. Bathymetry is shown on the map, with shallow shelf areas indicating where the iceberg is stuck on the seafloor.
British Antarctic Survey 🐧@bas.ac.uk · last yr.

"You are taught, during maritime training, how not to hit things. So to get to drive a ship that’s designed to hit the ice is great fun." Our own Captain Will Whatley chatted to @theguardian.com about being in charge of a royal research ship in Antarctica 🚢 www.theguardian.com/environment/...

I’m obsessed with icebreaking: I was trained not to hit anything – now I drive my ship into ice 24/7

As the captain of a royal research ship, I break ice to get to British stations in the Antarctic. It’s great fun - but getting stuck is always a risk

theguardian.com

Mapping and Geographic Information Centre@magic.bas.ac.uk · 2y ago

Did you know that MAGIC support the BAS Air Unit with mapping, imagery and also 3D visualisations? Check out Rothera runway, made using the latest drone imagery draped over a digital elevation model! Visualising the runway & obstacle surfaces in 3D helps pilots better understand these remote areas ✈️

Mapping and Geographic Information Centre@magic.bas.ac.uk · 2y ago

This stunning Copernicus Sentinel-2 image, acquired 15th Jan, shows our ship tucked into one of the creeks. Just a few more days work here moving scientific equipment and supplies on and off the continent. The large patch of sea ice has now blown in to surround us and significantly change our view.

A satellite image, approximately 4 nautical miles across, showing a series of creeks or inlets into the icy Antarctic coastline in the southern Bellingshausen Sea. Beyond the coastline, the ocean includes numerous icebergs and an area of floating sea ice.A subsection of a satellite image of the same area of coastline in the Antarctic. It zooms in to show a blurry picture of our ship alongside the ice cliffs and the depot of equipment and vehicles onshore.A photograph of the RRS Sir David Attenborough, moored up to ice cliffs on the English Coast in Antarctica. The water around the ship is covered in large pieces of floating sea ice.