| NSF Org: |
EAR Division Of Earth Sciences |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | January 9, 2017 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | March 15, 2019 |
| Award Number: | 1550913 |
| Award Instrument: | Continuing Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Raleigh Martin
ramartin@nsf.gov (703)292-7199 EAR Division Of Earth Sciences GEO Directorate for Geosciences |
| Start Date: | January 15, 2017 |
| End Date: | December 31, 2021 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $574,324.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $574,324.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
FY 2019 = $36,280.00 |
| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
2221 UNIVERSITY AVE SE STE 100 MINNEAPOLIS MN US 55414-3074 (612)624-5599 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
310 Pillsbury Dr. S.E. Minneapolis MN US 55455-2070 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): |
XC-Crosscutting Activities Pro, GEOINFORMATICS |
| Primary Program Source: |
01001920DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT |
| Program Reference Code(s): | |
| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.050 |
ABSTRACT
This project will continue to develop a mobile app, Flyover Country (FC), that will bring information about relevant points of interest (POI) and map data to the user while flying, and also driving or hiking, without the need for in-flight Wi-Fi, by downloading a strip of data based on the flightpath before the user boards the plane. GPS (Global Positioning System), which functions in airplane mode, allows precise flight tracking, making prompts for POI viewing timely and relevant. With around 4.5 million people flying every day, the potential audience for FC is huge, as is its potential for geoscience outreach. The app will directly feed high-quality geoscience information to the user at the very point when curiosity is stimulated, and could thus improve public science literacy as well as inspiring and supporting the development of a generation of geoscientists. FC could also readily be adapted for use in STEM education, and will be structured so as to provide a platform for the exposure of all types of geospatial geoscience data, forming new infrastructure for education and research.
Flyover Country (FC) is an open-source Android and iOS mobile application for geoscience outreach and education. Its key features are (1) delimitation of an area of interest to a traveler (e.g., a flight path, driving route, or hiking trail); (2) selection of georeferenced data within the delimited area via API calls to data repositories; (3) caching of these datasets on the user?s smartphone local storage; (4) exposure and promotion of points of interest (POI) by a location-aware service as the user approaches the POI. Work proposed here extends FC?s functionality to the geoscience research community as a data discovery tool that can be readily used in the field to instantly and dynamically provide context to new measurements. Novel visualization strategies for stratigraphic and multivariate data, as well as authorship and provenance networks, will further enhance researcher efficiency.
PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH
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PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
Flyover Country is a map-based mobile app that enables users to access information about the landscapes and natural history of the world around them. Ideal for use in both formal and informal educational settings, as well as for use by individuals, the app promotes place-based exploration of Earth system science. It also acts as an entry point for scientists to understand new field areas and assess what data is already available in those regions.
Initially designed with the airplane window seat in mind, the app allows users to cache all relevant data and base maps for offline use. Since location services are not disabled in airplane mode, users can actively track their location, altitude, and speed throughout their trip. By toggling on different data layers sourced from a variety of NSF-funded databases, users can gain insights into the often perplexing and entrancing views of the landscapes that make up our planet’s surface. We like to think of this grand view from 35,000 feet up, augmented by the Flyover Country app, as the planetarium of the Earth Sciences. A place where the big ideas and epic stories about our planet come to life in their full scale.
The app also works from more everyday altitudes: on hikes, road trips, or train rides. In fact, we think these uses of the app are often even better than the flagship window seat use case. We’ve worked with volunteers to curate hundreds of field guides to locations around the world, so you can get the experience of a geologic expert taking you on a tour of their favorite field area, whenever it’s convenient for you. We’ve seen this functionality used to create asynchronous field trip experiences, allowing students from more diverse backgrounds to participate than might otherwise have been possible. We also think that staying grounded is the best choice for individuals and organizations to make in order to address the ongoing climate crisis - cutting out flights where possible is one of the fastest ways to reduce your carbon emissions (though no substitute for collective action!).
We’re proud to say that Flyover Country has been downloaded hundreds of thousands of times and is used all over the world, bringing a little bit of the wonder scientists feel about the Earth right into people's hands. You can download Flyover Country for free, on both Android and iOS devices. Find out more at flyovercountry.io
Last Modified: 04/29/2022
Modified by: Shane Loeffler
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