NERC Field Spectroscopy Facility

Welcome to the FSF home page. The NERC Field Spectroscopy Facility is now located at the University of Edinburgh and is run alongside the NERC Geophysical Equipment Facility (GEF).

Included in this site are links to all relevant loan application and user information. Please follow the links on the left hand menu. Do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or require any further information not available on this site.

We look forward to seeing you in Edinburgh at some time... The FSF Team

News items:

The Novemeber application deadline approaches (Up dated Oct. 2011) Please note that the FSF application deadline for loans during March/April 2012 to September/October 2012 is 1st Novemeber. Researchers wishing to borrow FSF instrument during this period should apply using the form which can be downloaded from here. Guidance on the peer review application process and form completion can be found here but please feel free to contact us directly if you have any specific questions or require advice on instrument suitability or field methodology. Your application to FSF must detail how FSF instruments will be used and your proposed methods of data analysis, as well as making the science case. Please note the NPL/FSF GRASS field goniometer is now also available with a V-SWIR (400nm to 1800nm) spectroradiometer and should be applied for in the usual manner. If you had a loan from FSF this year in support of an ARSF project and were unable to complete your work for reasons beyond your control, you must request that your loan be rolled forward and advise us of your revised schedule. If you have already applied for FSF instruments for ground support for ARSF projects using the joint ARSF/FSF application form you have not need to apply again. We look forward to receiving your applications.

The annual FSF Introduction to Field Spectroscopy course dates announced (Up dated Oct. 2011) The highly regarded annual FSF Introduction to Field Spectroscopy 2 1/2 day course will again held at the School of Geosciences, University of Edinburgh from at the end of March/begining of April 2012. Please note that places are limited, and the course is usually over subscribed, so those PhD students and early career researchers interested in attending should contact FSF fsf@nerc.ac.uk to book a place as soon as possible.

FSF Post Processing Matlab Toolbox updated (Up dated Oct. 2011) The Facility's Matlab Post processing Toolbox version 1.3.4 has been released. The FSF Matlab Toolbox can now be added to the Matlab Toolbox path and then Help functions and the User Guide can be found from within the Matlab Help dialogue. The FSF Toolbox now includes filter functions to convolve high spectral resolution field acquired spectra with the spectral response functions of a number of satellite sensors. These filter functions have been compiled from the data published by Prof. Mike Stevens in Stevens, M. Matlthus, T. (2003) Intercalibration of vegetation indices from different sensor systems, IJRS. 88 2003 412-422. A link to download the Toolbox can be found here. The Field Spectroscopy FacilitThe Toolbox User Group is intended to provide a series of useful utilities designed to facilitate the extraction and processing of field spectrometer data collected by the Facility's equipment suite. You are able to download open-source macros and programmes that may be of use to you, as well as contributing your own for others to use. Please inform FSF if you are using this resource. Click here to go to the FSF User Group web page.

Microtops software for retreval of AOT available for download. (Updated Feb. 2011) Microtops Inverse, developed by Vitchko Tsanev and Tamsin Mather, is designed to allow the retrieval of columnar aerosol optical thickness, concentrated in plumes, from Microtops II measurements. Plumes can result from volcanoes, fires or industrial plants and the Facility's Microtops instruments have been used to study plumes resulting from an eruptions of Mt Etna in 2006 and the 2005 Buncefield Oil Depot fire. For more information and to download the software please 'click' here

New software resources written by Dr J. Hedley have been released. (Up dated Novemeber 2010) The PlanarRad software package for calculating radiative transfer in plane-parallel shallow-water environments was developed by Dr John Hedley at the University of Exeter and is now available. Click here to access the PlanarRad web pages. A report summarising the results obtained during the demonstration at RSPSoc 2009 conference is available to download. In addition, WLTool, a software routine to extract and merge data acquired by the Facility's AC-S and HyperOCR suite of instruments is now also available. Please click here to access the WLTool web pages.

A request from FSF (Posted May 2010) The Field Spectroscopy Facility instruments are owned by NERC and NERC fully funds the 2 FTE posts required to staff FSF. To justify this support the Facility is required annually produce evidence of the support it gives to the UK research community and the scientific benefit to the UK that is derived from that support. NERC regard publications as the prime indicator of science supported by FSF. Publications, therefore, are the primary means by which the value of the Facility to the scientific community is judged. Any investigators in receipt of a NERC FSF loan is required to supply bibliographic references and if possible copies of all publications (including PhD theses, non refereed publications including conference presentations and proceedings and any other publicity relating to their work) which discuss or describe results obtained through the use of Facility equipment. It is a NERC requirement that support given by NERC and FSF be acknowledged in all such publication. In addition, when substantial and detailed advice is given by FSF staff, when FSF post processing templates and when FSF calibration services are used this assistance should also be acknowledged or cited as appropriate in any subsequent publications.

FSF support investigations into the Iceland volcanic ash plume. (Posted May 2010) The NERC Field Spectroscopy Facility have been assisting both the national meteorological and the

New reporting requirment for applicants borrowing instruments from FSF (Posted May 2010) At the time of loan a NERC FSF Loan Agreement form will be supplied to the PI listed on the application. This form will detail the main instruments being lent with serial numbers, the instrument capital values, the daily financial value assigned by NERC to the loan and the agreed loan period. The total value of the loan will be recalculated on return of the instruments to FSF and this value used by NERC in the RAE. A sample of the new Loan Agreement form can be down loaded from here.

Within 1 month of completion of a loan investigators must supply to FSF a Loan Report detailing any problems encountered while using FSF instruments and indicating the success of field data acquisition. Within one year of completion of a loan investigators must supply an Interim Science Report to FSF and within 2 years of completion of a loan a Science Report. Sample report formsindicating what is required can be found on the FSF web site. Copies of these report forms will also be included on the memory stick supplied with FSF instruments at time of loan.

Applicants may also be requested to present your work at a FSF users seminar to be held at a future date.

Note. NERC FSF recommends and in some cases requires that users insure equipment for 'all risks' the duration of the loan, duration of the loan being from receipt of the equipment at the delivery address until it is received back at FSF.

The NERC Field Spectroscopy Facility contract has been renewed. (Up dated May 2010) Following the Field Spectroscopy Facility scoring maximum grades in the Services Review Group round, undertaken by NERC Services and Facilities in early 2009. The Facility's contract will be renewed with the School of Geoscience, University of Edinburgh for a further 5 years from April 2010. The reviews are held regularly for each NERC supported Service/Facility to ensure that they continue to provide cost-effective research support relevant to NERC's science objectives. FSF obtained maximum (5) scores in all the four categories in which it was reviewed (need, uniqueness, quality of service, quality of science and training), the highest score of any of the facilities reviewed in 2009. Reviewers comments were highly flattering including such statements as:

'the Facility's equipment is state-of-the-art and evolving to meet user demands';

'a well run cost effective facility, serving a wide range of community needs.'

'The SRG considered the quality of science being undertaken was 'very impressive'

'the User community has praised the quality of service provided by the Facility

The SRG Complemented the Facility on the level of training it makes available to users and those attending the Introduction to Field Spectroscopy course

The review group acknowledged the global distribution of projects supported by the Facility and commented that this was a particular strength. In addition, the review group recognised the scope for collaboration with other NERC Facilities and encouraged FSF to pursue these.

A pdf of the report submitted to the SRG can be down loaded here

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