I grew up in a small town where the sky was dark enough at night to get me wondering about the universe. That led me to bachelor degrees in Philosophy and Physics, and a PhD in Extragalactic Astronomy studying the evolution of galaxies and active galactic nuclei from deep X-ray and optical surveys.
I then became responsible for the astronomical calibration of the near-IR multiobject spectrograph for the largest optical telescope in the world, and kept researching galaxy formation and evolution within the Galaxy Origins Youth Assembly programme.
After that I concentrated on teaching. A few years ago I turned satellite sensors from observing outward into deep space back to sensing the Earth, and these days I'm mainly doing research in optimising natural resources from remote sensing data as well as teaching.
For more information, have a look at my curriculum vitae .
Geographic information systems and remote sensing applied to improve the management of natural resources.
more >>We use remote sensing, geographic information systems and local sensors to map light pollution and infer environmental and social parameters from it.
more >>How quasars are related to star and galaxy formation is one of the most pressing cosmological questions and the one we've been trying to dilucidate.
more >>This article tracks the evolution of the regulatory framework in relation to transport noise in England from private and public nuisances in common law to the defence of statutory authority. We look at the evolution of transport noise law focusing primarily on the emergence of turnpike roads in the eighteenth century, railways in the nineteenth century, the extension of road motor vehicles in the verge of the twentieth century and, lastly, the introduction of jet aircraft after World War II. The introduction of these noise sources shaped the current noise regulatory framework in England.
more >>Paramo ecosystems are areas of high natural interest as they contribute to water regulation, carbon retention, and possess significant biodiversity. The objective of this study is to develop an effective, economical, and easy to update methodology that allows simple monitoring of its conservation status, rate of degradation, and changes in land use at all times with the aim of, helping to take adequate measures to protect the high Andean tropical moors.
more >>We have developed a simple photogrammetric method to identify heterogeneous areas of irrigated olive groves and vineyard crops using a commercial multispectral camera mounted on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). By comparing NDVI, GNDVI, SAVI, and NDRE vegetation indices, we find that the latter shows irrigation irregularities in an olive grove not discernible with the other indices. This may render the NDRE as particularly useful to identify growth inhomogeneities in crops. Given the fact that few satellite detectors are sensible in the red-edge (RE) band and none with the spatial resolution offered by UAVs, this finding has the potential of turning UAVs into a local farmer’s favourite aid tool.
more >>Just four decades ago, astronomers thought black holes —regions of intense gravity from which no information can escape— were mathematical oddities. But now astronomers, armed with large multiwavelength telescopes, infer the presence of supermassive black holes in the cores of most medium to large galaxies. They are the driving engines of quasars, which are highly energetic objects seen in the most distant galaxies. How quasars are related to star and galaxy formation is one of the most pressing cosmological questions and the one we've been trying to dilucidate.
more >>A study consisting on determining the correspondence between satellite data on nitrogen dioxide (NO_2) in the atmosphere and official surface air quality measurement stations has been the main focus of this work. A methodology for estimating NO_2 on the surface using satellite data is proposed. The results show that it is possible toestimate the level of NO2 on the surface using data from the Sentinel-5 Percursor satellite. However, a relationship between air quality data sets and meteorological variable information has not been determined.
more >>In this work we study the impact of light pollution on the Natura 2000 network of EU-protected habitats in Catalonia. In particular, we set our focus on analysing how excessive artificial light in the ecological corridors connecting protected natural areas fragments the landscape at night and may isolate their nocturnal fauna.
more >>This work provides visual information regarding the generation and management of the industrial waste to facilitate the application of policies or business models that contribute to a better management of such waste. The data used are part of the 2018 Annual Industrial Waste Declaration, provided by the Agència de Residus de Catalunya (ARC).
more >>Satellite images are used to analyze the social, economic and environmental factors of sustainability in Bolivia. Night-time Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) images are used to trace the distribution of the population, and we correlate artificial light with energy consumption, environmental degradation and pollution by CO2 emissions, and social aspects that are obtained from secondary information sources.
more >>Master's degree in Natural Resources Engineering. UPC · BarcelonaTech
more >>Bachelor's degrees in Industrial Electronics and Automatic Control Engineering, Mining Engineering, Chemistry Engineering, and in ICT Systems Engineering. (Access course website as visitor with password «fisica».)
more >>I would love to hear from you, so please drop me a line.