Research

Our Focus Areas

Remote Sensing

The process of detecting and monitoring the physical characteristics of an area by measuring its reflected and emitted radiation at a distance.

Photogrammetry

The science and technology of obtaining reliable information about physical objects and the environment through photographic images.

Laser Scanning

A technology which uses laser beams to measure and capture environments in three dimensions with speed and accuracy.

Geoinformatics

The science and technology which uses information science to address the problems of geosciences and related branches.

Navigation and Positioning

The ability to determine current and desired position and apply corrections to attain a desired position anywhere around the world.

Surveying and Geodesy

The representations of large portions of the Earth’s surface and smaller portions where the effect of the Earth’s curvature can be ignored.

Ground-Based Sensors

The utilization of a variety of geophysical survey techniques to “see” beneath the surface of the soil, providing a map of the underlying features.

Geospatial AI

The combination of innovations in spatial science, high-performance computing, and AI methods to extract knowledge from spatial big data.

Geospatial Big Data

Spatial data sets exceed the capacity of traditional computing systems. They have always been big data, and their size is growing rapidly.

Geospatial CV

An interdisciplinary field of AI that trains computer to interpret geospatial photographies and videos.

Promotional Videos

PolyU GeoAI Insights

Earth Observer: JC STEM Research Spotlight

Lab Introduction

Handbook of Geospatial Approaches to Sustainable Cities (Imaging Science)

Workshop Highlights

Fieldwork

1. GeoAI for Climate Resilience (ResilientIA): Building a Global Centre for Safe, Trustworthy, and Ethical Geospatial AI

This project proposes to establish a Global Climate Resilience Geospatial Artificial Intelligence Centre dedicated to advancing scientific innovation, ethical technological development, and trustworthy real-world applications to address the urgent challenges of climate change.

Approved Funding: A 90% subsidy (the highest category of subsidy, equivalent to a cash value of HK$5,184,000)

2. AI-Driven, GIS-Compatible Vehicle Type Detection System Riding on Fusion of Satellite, CCTV, and Geospatial Data

The project aims to develop a vehicle type detection system based on satellite and CCTV images. It will address existing AI limitations, such as limited generalisation capability and complex background interference. The project will deliver precise vehicle data analytics to facilitate traffic management in Hong Kong.

Approved Funding: HK$3,230,831.85

3. From Greenness to Coolness: Global Analysis of Urban Vegetation–Heat Temporal Coupling

This project aims to quantify how urban vegetation, specifically satellite-derived vegetation greenness (Enhanced Vegetation Index, EVI), regulates Land Surface Temperature (LST) across different time scales and climate conditions.

Approved Funding: HK$800,000.00

4. Resilience of Rural Infrastructure and Communities to Climate Change

As climate change intensifies, suburban communities of Hong Kong and other rural Asian population will face increasing risks from extreme heat events, necessitating proactive measures to enhance resilience.

Approved Funding: HK$8,000,000.00

5. A Pilot Study of Geospatial AI and Big Data for Smart City Applications: Foundation Model and Specific Methodologies

This project aims to provide a Geospatial Artificial Intelligence (GeoAI) and big data based solution to the development of key smart city technologies for Hong Kong and the world.

Approved Funding: HK$820,000.00

6. Optimal Use of Satellite Thermal Infrared Image Data for Advancing Land Surface Temperature Analysis and Mitigating Urban Heat Stress

To overcome satellite resolution limits in capturing urban heat, this project integrates Landsat, MODIS, and Himawari data using novel thermal fusion and deep-learning models to create two high-resolution Land Surface Temperature (LST) datasets (2000–2024). It will generate a daily 60-meter LST dataset to analyze annual temperature cycles and an hourly 1-kilometer LST dataset to assess diurnal temperature variations while correcting for differences in satellite passing times.

Approved Funding: HK$1,095,918.00

7. Interacting Risks in Global Megacities: From Measurement and Monitoring to Management

Understanding the urban heat island (UHI) phenomenon and its impact on vegetation phenology require long-term consistent observation and measurement of ambient temperatures and phenological metrics. This research develops a holistic methodology to derive these variables from time series Landsat datasets and to analyze their dynamic relationship for 30 global mega-cities from 1989 to 2019.

Approved funding: HK$1,000,000.00

8. A GeoAI framework for urban flood hazard monitoring, risk assessment, and scenario-based projection

This project will develop an integrated framework for urban flood monitoring, prediction, risk assessment, and future risk projection by fusing various technologies, including geospatial AI, remote sensing, and climate and socioeconomic projection models, and by focusing on Hong Kong and the GBA.

Approved funding: HK$1,600,000.00

9. Response of Vegetation Phenology to Land Surface Temperature in Major Metropolitan Areas across the Asian Monsoon regions

Rapid urbanization and climate change necessitate analyzing how urban heat islands affect vegetation phenology. This project develops new methodologies to study vegetation response to Land Surface Temperature (LST) across Asia's seven largest monsoonal metropolises over three decades. Using reconstructed 30m LST and NDVI time-series data, it examines how thermal-phenological relationships evolved across Local Climate Zones and urban-rural gradients, using VIIRS nighttime lights to link diverse urbanization processes to environmental impacts.

Approved Funding: HK$877,079.00

10. Geospatial AI Enabled Global Urban Road Mapping, Inspection, and Management

Accurate and timely road mapping that describes the road network geometry and topology is the key element of intelligent transport systems and smart city management. Intelligent road inspection that obtains sensing information about the size and shape of road damage is essential for safe driving and sustainable transport development.

Approved funding: HK$1,288,513.00

11. Disentangling Scale-Dependent and Lagged Vegetation Cooling Effects on Urban Land Surface Temperature Across Global Climate Zones

Driven by climate change and urban heat islands, cities face rising heat risks. This project examines the temporal mechanisms and physical limits of vegetation cooling across 150+ global cities using satellite EVI and LST time series. By combining machine learning and time-frequency diagnostics, it introduces the Urban Greening Cooling Coupling Index (UGCCI) to evaluate cooling magnitude, lag resilience, thresholds, and stability, ultimately projecting future vegetation cooling performance under shifting climate scenarios.

Approved Funding: HK$992,787

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Our Focus Areas

Promotional Videos

Overview of Our Current Research Projects