科學家從太空中統計鯨魚的數量

UK scientists have demonstrated the practicality of counting whales from space.

英國科學家日前證明了從太空計數鯨魚的實用性。

The researchers, from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), have been using the highest resolution satellite pictures available.

來自英國南極調查局的研究人員一直在使用最高分辨率的衛星圖片計數鯨魚。

Even when taken from 620km up, this imagery is sharp enough to capture the distinctive shapes of different species.

即使從620公里以上拍攝，這個圖像也足夠清晰，可以捕捉到不同物種的獨特形狀。

The team will soon conduct an audit of fin whales in the Mediterranean.

該小組很快將會對地中海的長鬚鯨進行統計。

The first-of-its-kind assessment will be partly automated by employing a computer program to search through the satellite data.

這次前所未有的計數的一部分將由計算機程序搜索衛星數據完成。

Waters north of Corsica, known as the Ligurian Sea, are a protected area for cetaceans, and the regional authorities want to understand better the animals' movements in relation to shipping to try to avoid collisions.

科西嘉島北部的水域，被稱爲利古里亞海，是鯨類動物的保護區，地區當局希望更好地瞭解這些動物在船隻來往時作出的活動反應，從而避免碰撞的發生。

Previous studies have played with the idea of spotting whales from orbit, but with limited success.

以前的研究提出過從衛星軌道上計數鯨魚的想法，但成效有限。

This new approach from BAS has drawn on imagery from the WorldView-3 spacecraft operated by the American company DigitalGloble.

英國南極調查局的這種新方法，使用了美國公司DigitalGloble運營的WorldView-3航天器來繪製圖像。

WorldView-3 is able to discern things at the Earth's surface as small as 31cm across. Only restricted military systems see finer detail.

WorldView-3能夠識別地球表面小到31釐米的東西。只有受限制的軍事系統才能看到更精細的圖像。

"Satellites have improved so much with their spatial resolution," explained Hannah Cubaynes, who is affiliated to both Cambridge University and BAS. "For the first time we've been able to see features that are truly distinctive of whales, such as their flippers and flukes."

劍橋大學和英國南極調查局的研究員漢納·庫比內斯解釋道：“衛星的空間分辨率得到了很大的提升。我們第一次能夠看到真正屬於鯨魚的獨特特徵，例如鰭狀肢和身上的吸蟲。”