Section A·Page 4
The University Daily Kansan
Wednesday, June 3, 1998
University hosts world conference on radar advances
By Sarah Morgan
Kansan staff writer
Scientists and engineers from more than 20 countries visited the University of Kansas to look for more than buried treasure.
The Seventh International Conference on Ground-Penetrating Radar was held May 27 to 30 at the Kansas Union.
"Having an international conference of this sort informs the world about the benefits of KU, " said Carl E. Locke, Jr., dean of the School of Engineering.
About 240 participants who work in fields ranging from archeology to construction to hydrogeology attended exhibits and demonstrations on GPR.
"GPR is a very multi-disciplinary field," said Richard George Plumb, associate professor of electrical engineering and computer sciences. "There are few fields of research where you'll find hard-core electrical engineers, archeologists, geologists, physicists working together."
Plumb said that ground-penetrating radar was a non-invasive technique that worked like any other kind of radar. The difference is that the antennae are pointed toward the ground.
Ground-penetrating radar is a system or technique for finding remote objects and determining what they are, where they are and if they are moving. This is done by means of radio waves that reflect from the surface of the object.
This method allows researchers to search underground or inside structures without digging or demolishing.
Antennae are used to transmit and receive the radio waves. The waves are reflected when an object is in the beam's path.
The waves are then received by the radar unit, processed electronically and converted into images on a computer screen.
GPR TECH PROJECTS Projects which use GPR technology:
- track down a woolly mammoth
- inspect railway tracks in Switzerland
- test airport concrete structures
- study ground that has been mined for lead or zinc in Joplin, Mo.
GPR is used for many purposes because it can pass through air, water, soil and dense materials.
Archaeologists use GPR to search for ancient cities or fossils. GPR is used by highway departments to evaluate roads without destroying road surfaces. Environmental engineers use it to determine if pollutants are endangered water tables.
The GPR conferences, which began in 1986 in Georgia, are a biennial series of international scientific symposia devoted to the advancements of ground-penetrating radar, according to a news release from the School of Engineering.
The conference sites are alternated between the Eastern and Western hemispheres. Previous conferences have been held in Japan, Finland, Canada and at several sites in the Unites States. GPR '00 will be held outside North America.
Plumb, chair of the GPR '98 conference executive committee, represented his proposal at GPR '96 in Japan for the University to be the conference site for GPR '96.
The University was chosen for the site because of the school's Radar Systems and Remote Sensing Laboratory.
The lab has been involved with nearly every radar system flown in space, in all phases of microwave of remote sensing and the development of systems of research and operational sensing.
Plumb, who has been working with GPR for six years, is the acting director of the labs.
Casting for fun
Ruben Mendaza, Lawrence resident, gives his son Demarcopointer on the best way to catch a fish at Potter Lake yesterday. The Lake is a popular spot for fishing and relaxing on warm afternoons. Photo by Graham Johnson/KANSAN.
Commission OKs airport upgrade
By Jenny Oakson Kansan staff writer
Lawrence Municipal Airport is scheduled for a facelift.
Last night, the Lawrence City Commission accepted a renovation and payment proposal to repair one of the white cinder block airplane hangars and to build a new hangar ranging from 10,000 to 14,000 square feet.
Two basic development plans exist, with options for the city to bond or lease the two hangers. DreamWings L.L.C. and private investor Lloyd Hetrick want to finance the cost of improvements to the city's cinder block hangar rather than pay for the improvements up front.
Commissioners and private investors said the improved airport would allow for more commercial traffic in the future.
"I think we all want to promote the airport as an improvement to the community and an opportunity for more Lawrence business," said Greg Smith, chairman of the Aviation Advisory Board.
Local businesses such as Oread Labs fly private jets into Lawrence Municipal Airport in order to conduct business. The proposal aims to offer better storage, staff, and hangar options, which the city hopes will attract more business to Lawrence.
Private hangar owners, recreational pilots, and instructors met with the Aviation Advisory Board to discuss safety regulations and the long-term status of the airport. The renovation plan has drawn criticism because ultra-light recreational vehicles would share limited air and landing space with private lets.
"I'm not sure that combining the iet
traffic and small planes is a compatible or safe way to go, but it's feasible," said private hangar owner Al Stuber.
Stuber's hangar sits 80 feet away from the proposed new hangar site. He said that more jet traffic, such as private jets landing for Jayhawk basketball home games, would be a hazard to private nplots.
The commissioners, led by Lawrence Mayor Marty Kennedy, directed their staff to draw up appropriate leases and to conduct building and engineering surveys around the airport land.
"The costs we have now, although they do not include internal maintenance or storm water maintenance, are worth reconstructing our airport, a symbol of the city to visitors of Lawrence," said Commissioner Bonnie Augustine.
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