Dr. Aditya Singh
Assistant Professor, Hyperspectral and Hypertemporal Remote Sensing
Dr. Aditya Singh began as an Assistant Professor of Remote Sensing in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at the University of Florida in 2017. Previously, Dr. Singh obtained his Ph.D. in Forestry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an M.S. from the Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Department of the University of Florida. Aditya specializes in the application of optical remote sensing science in support of landscape-scale research on forest health, agricultural irrigation water management, assessment of pest and disease stress and occurrence, and food security in developing nations.
A major part of Aditya’s research involves developing tools and techniques for utilizing measurements obtained from combinations of contact (leaf-level), proximal (canopy-scale) and landscape-scale satellite and imaging spectroscopy data to assess plant nutrient status, health, and functioning. In combination with ancillary information such as climate and soils, he uses these data to infer the effects of water, thermal and pest-induced stresses on the functioning of forest trees and agricultural crops, with the eventual intent being of increasing realism in mechanistic ecosystem process models.
Overlapping extensively with his research program, his extension activities focus on identifying appropriate remote sensing data sources and technologies that are of direct relevance land, water, and crop management in Florida. Aditya’s outreach efforts are focused on generating remote sensing derived products that can be of direct relevance to landowners and farm managers. For extension faculty and agents, his program focuses on assisting with incorporating cutting edge remote sensing components into their research programs and assist with framing grant proposals that leverage these new and upcoming technologies.
Contact Information
352-294-6739
Office:
261 Frazier Rogers Hall
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 110570
Gainesville, FL 32611-0570
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Research
Departmental Research Areas:
- Biological Engineering
- Information Systems
Research Focus:
- Assessing land cover change at regional scales using moderate resolution satellite imagery: Funded by NASA, this study aims to analyze regional patterns of land cover change as emergent properties of extant patterns of food insecurity characterized by the availability of infrastructure, institutional support and policy instruments, and socio-economic and demographic change in rural India.
- Assessing the abundance distribution of forest canopy traits using airborne hyperspectral imagery: Funded by grants from NASA and the National Science Foundation, this research utilizes data collected from airborne imaging spectrometers (hyperspectral imagers) and coordinated field campaigns across National Ecological Observatory Network sites in the US, and tropical dry deciduous forests in India, to develop cross-continental and cross-biome models of foliar functional traits of forest canopies.
- Understanding crop functioning, responses to stress, and water and nutrient use using small unmanned aerial systems: Funded by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, this project aims at assessing the ability of UAS-borne visual and thermal imagery to assess water demand and nutrient use by specialty crops such as turfgrass in Florida.
- Assessing plant function, nutrient status, and response to stresses using optical reflectance spectra: in collaboration with colleagues in ABE, Aditya is involved in developing a unique sensor suite and instrument suite that will allow tracking of foliar nutrients, stress responses, and growth patterns of plants across their lifetimes. Data obtained from this testbed will be utilized to scale observations from the greenhouse to the field using mechanistic crop models.
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Education
- Ph.D. Forestry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2014
- M.S. Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida, 2008
- Post Graduate Diploma: Geoinformatics applications for environmental assessment and disaster management, 2004
- Post Graduate Diploma: Urban Planning, Centre for Environmental Planning and Technology (CEPT), Ahmedabad, India, 2002
- Bachelor of Architecture, Madhav Institute of Technology and Science, Gwalior, India, 2000
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Professional Experience
- 2017 - Present
Assistant Professor, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida - 2015 - 2017
Assistant Research Scientist, Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison - 2014 - 2015
Postdoctoral Research Assistant, Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- 2017 - Present
- Publications
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Awards and Honors
- International Educator Award for Junior Faculty, UF/IFAS College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, 2019
- Graduate assistantship, NASA Decisions program, 2010 - 2014
- Graduate assistantship, NASA Terrestrial Ecology program, 2008 - 2010
- Graduate Assistantship, School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Florida (USD16,000 p.a.), 2006 - 2008
- Grinter fellow, University of Florida Graduate School (USD 2500 p.a.), 2007
- Grinter fellow, University of Florida Graduate School (USD 3000 p.a.), 2006
- Lewis Anthony Dexter fellow, Program for Studies in Tropical Conservation, University of Florida (USD 9000 p.a.), 2006
- In-service training scholarship for the post-graduate diploma course in Geoinformatics at IIRS, Dehradun. Sponsored by CEPT, Ahmedabad (INR 60,000), 2004
- Graduate Aptitude Test Examination Scholarship, India (INR 30,000 p.a.), 2000
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Other Professional Activities
- American Geophysical Union
- American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers
- American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing
- American Society of Mammalogists
- Ecological Society of America
- Indian Bird Conservation Network (IBCN, BNHS, Mumbai)
- Indian Society of Geomatics (ISG) SAC/ISRO, Ahmedabad
- Council of Architecture (CoA, India)