NASA wants to apply airborne technology in agriculture; it would help detect early symptoms of vine diseases. Winegrowers could thus intervene before harvests are lost.
It is estimated that 15 to 30% of the world’s wine production is lost each year due to bacteria, viruses and various plant pathogens. Often when these infectious agents are spotted, it is already too late. That’s why NASA is exploring this new remote sensing approach. It would facilitate ground monitoring of vines and potentially save billions of dollars.
Detection before the first symptoms
It was during a case study that a team of scientists managed to spot an infection in Cabernet Sauvignon vines before symptoms were visible to the naked eye. The infection in question is a disease dreaded by winegrowers called GLRaV-3, or vine roll. It does not kill the plant, but greatly limits the yield per hectare. This technology was developed at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California and has made it possible to identify the subtle signs of this virus by remote monitoring.
An innovative airborne approach
This technology is partly based on machine learning as well as technology created by NASA: a latest-generation airborne infrared/visible imaging spectrometer, the AVIRIS NG. It is an instrument which, once embarked in the air, can measure and monitor many different data: forest fires, greenhouse gas emissions or oil spills.
Integrated into an airplane, the device was able to comb through more than 4,400 hectares of Californian vineyards. All the visual data collected was then rigorously integrated into computer models able to differentiate an infected vine from a healthy vine. The operation of these analysis models relies on the power of artificial intelligence. No equivalent instrument as effective exists for monitoring crops.
A bit like AI cameras detecting fires, this new tool developed by NASA could prove very effective in the future. By detecting early signs of infection, it enables faster intervention. Nothing prevents us from imagining that the system could be extended to other types of crops.
Source : NASA
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