Drs. Assaf Anyamba, Robert Mahoney and Compton J. Tucker of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., are the first place recipients of the 2003 John I. Davidson President’s Award for Practical Papers presented by the American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) for their paper “Mapping Potential Risk of Rift Valley Fever Outbreaks in African Savannas Using Vegetation Index Time Series Data.”

This paper was selected for its practical value in demonstrating the capability of using satellite data for near-real time monitoring of eco-climatic conditions necessary for outbreaks of Rift Valley Fever in Africa. This work is part of a collaborative effort between NASA and the Department of Defense’s Global Emerging Infections System which attempts to monitor and predict outbreaks of Rift Valley Fever early enough to prevent them or reduce their impact on society.

The presentation of the award will take place on Thursday May 8th at the Awards Luncheon during the ASPRS 2003 Annual Conference in Anchorage, Alaska, May 5-9, 2003. The award consists of a Pewter Tankard and cash to be divided between the NASA researchers and coauthors Drs. Kenneth Linthicum and Patrick Kelly.

Founded in 1934, the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing is a scientific association serving over 7,000 professional members around the world. The mission of the ASPRS is to advance knowledge and improve understanding of mapping sciences and to promote the responsible applications of photogrammetry, remote sensing, geographic information systems (GIS), and supporting technologies.

The lead author, Assaf Anyamba, is a native of Kenya, received his PhD in Geography in 1997 from Clark University, Worcester, MA, and received an MS in Geography in 1992 from Ohio University, Athens. He currently works as a Goddard Earth Sciences and Technology Center/University of Maryland Baltimore County (GEST/UMBC) research scientist and studies the Earth’s surface interannual variability using data form satellites. Previous awards include a Harvard University/National Museums of Kenya Scholarship (1988), a NASA Graduate Student Fellowship in global change research (1993-1997), and a NASA Postdoctoral Fellowship 1997-1998. He is an avid soccer player and fan, and has high hopes of one day marketing his famous Kenyan ginger-spice power tea, a favorite among his co-workers.

The NASA/Goddard co-authors are Compton J. Tucker, head of the Global Image Mapping and Modeling Studies (GIMMS) group of the Biospheric Sciences Branch, and Robert Mahoney who works for the GIMMS group through Global Science and
Technology Inc of Greenbelt, Md. The other co-authors are Kenneth Linthicum, the Supervising Public Health Biologist, Vector-Borne Disease Section, Southern Region California Department of Health Services and Col. Patrick W. Kelly, Director of the Division of Preventative Medicine at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research.

The paper, “Mapping Potential Risk of Rift Valley Fever Outbreaks in African Savannas Using Vegetation Index Time Series Data,” appeared in the Journal, Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, February 2002; 68-2, pp. 137-145).

For more information about this work:

http://www.geis.ha.osd.mil/GEIS/SurveillanceActivities/RVFWeb/index.htm