RESEARCH
Costal Mapping

The Marine Remote Sensing Group (MRSG) of the Marine Science Department of the University of the Aegean aims to develop methods and processes for the data acquisition and mapping of the coastal environment.
Over the last decade, spatial analysis of satellite imagery has improved considerably, yet the information collected using satellite remote sensing is still insufficient for monitoring medium and small changes in the Earth's surface. MRSG team use Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) to collect remote sensing data, capable of capturing the complexity coastal morphology in very high resolution for the creation of both two-dimensional and three-dimensional representations. The use of unmanned aerial systems for spatial data acquisition is continually increasing last years due to their advantages compared to traditional airborne and satellite methods.The MRSG has the necessary equipment and a scientific background in using UAS to acquire spatial data with high precision and to monitor spatiotemporal phenomena in the coastal zone. We use computer vision algorithms to produce geoinformation and geospatial products such as orthophotos with a spatial resolution of 3 to 10 cm and we compare those with traditional satellite images e.g. Sentinel-02 and Landsat-8.
During the last years fieldwork, the MRSG team carried out a collection of high precision and very high-resolution remote sensing data in Greece. We created geospatial products for seven Aegean islands (i.e. Chios, Naxos, Ios, Folegandros, Sifnos, Tinos, and Lesvos) for more than 22 coastal areas. During the collection of spatial data, the group carried out autonomous flights lasting more than 5 hours of surveying (air time), collecting more than 6.000 high-resolution aerial photographs.
MRSGroup has one of the largest collection of high-resolution geoinformation (orthophoto maps) for Greek coastal zone, and is one of the most advanced equipped team in Greece for monitoring the coastal environment.
Some of Group coastal zone monitoring surveys in Greek Islands are the following.
Table 1. MRSG coastal database (up to summer 2016)
In the following figures some examples of the produced products are illustrated.
Figure 1. Faros beach (Sifnos Island)
Figure 2. Port area of Folegandros Island
Figure 3. Area close to Sk. Sikamias (Lesvos Island).

Figure 4. Area in Xampelia (Lesvos Island)
Figure 5. Beach of Ac. Antissa (Lesvos Island)
Figure 6. Tsixrantra Beach (Lesvos Island)
Figure 7. Ag. Ermioni Beach (Chios Island)
Figure 8. Akrotiri in Naxos Island
Figure 9. Akti beach in Ios Island
Figure 10. Port of Ios island