High-Level Project Summary
Our project consists of an application, open for anyone who wishes to be part of the change. First of all, as you download the app and spot ocean debris or junk accumulated in any type of water body, you click on the "+" button, which acts as an Incident Report Form, which you can fill in with information about the amount of debris spotted and the types of items you can visualize. By doing this, the app will send your form including your satellite location to the local authorities or NGOs that will surely collect this type of cluster and solve the issue. And behind all this app, is our excel and python program, which has the helps us visualize all the reports with their respective data.
Link to Project "Demo"
Link to Final Project
Detailed Project Description
Our program works with a python code, combined with an excel database which saves all the data that’s registered by the users, this includes the exact geological coordinates of the place where the user finds plastic debris accumulated (longitude and latitude), quantity, and types of items involved. This is processed and compiled by the device and lets the user choose which type of this information they want to know. This is all represented and portrayed in our app, created and designed by using AppSheets and implementing a user-friendly look for it. Here is where each user has the possibility to register and report any sighting of plastic or junk debris found in a river, ocean, lake, beach, etc. They can send the report by clicking the “+” button and indicating which type of junk is stocked and scattered and the app, which will have automatic access to the user’s location if he allows the app to do so, can also send your exact and current location by satellite to the local authorities or the local NGOs that are part of our project and will surely offer to solve the situation. This is a proper, easy and efficient way for you to be part of the change, to help and contribute to the process of saving our oceans, their species, and natural resources as well.
Space Agency Data
First of all, the main resource data provided by NASA that our team used is the CVS of Marine Debris.
We also based our program and our database in the Marine Debris Fast Facts page (https://coast.noaa.gov/states/fast-facts/marine-debris.html) and the OR&R's Marine Debris Program (https://marinedebris.noaa.gov/).
Hackathon Journey
It is our second year participating in this contest but it was still a fun and learning experience for all of us. We enjoyed the challenge and being able to come up with creative solutions for a problem that affects our daily life.
Marine debris and its terrible consequences were kind of an unknown topic for some of us, therefore we learned a lot about how it affects the environment, kills animals, and is even harmful to our health.
We selected this challenge because we didn’t want to choose one that we thought most will do, but to go for another that we believed does not receive enough attention. Also, because we know that our country is greatly affected by this problem and with that, the marine biodiversity we have.
For solving this issue, we decided to create an app. This app would allow people to locate litter in oceans and communicate it, so that bigger organizations in charge of keeping the environment clean, would take care of the trash. At the same time, these people would be participating in a giveaway, in which the one who located more litter would receive a prize. We did this because we wanted to present an incentive for more citizens to want to take part in our project as we believe that the only way to control or stop the presence of marine debris in our oceans is with the help of each one of us, especially since we were the cause of everything.
In regards to setbacks, we had a few, but to solve them we did what we usually do best. Work as a team, brainstorm ideas and come up with creative and innovative solutions that will actually contribute and change the world for the better.
Finally, we would like to thank our teacher, Mr. Alfonso, for giving us the opportunity and trusting us, as a team, to participate for the second time in NASA Space App Challenge. He was there for us in every step, guiding us, giving us recommendations to be better, and solving all our doubts, so we know that without we would not have been able to do a tremendous project, and for that we are grateful.
References
Among the many and diverse variety of resources our team wielded, the most crucial and determining is the Google Maps Satellite that we used to connect the program with the user's location in order to find the debris. We also utilized an excel data base which stored new inputs that every user sends through the app. And we also required to use python as our coding language for our program, which eventually resulted pretty efficient.
Tags
#Python #GeoLocation #App #Oceans
Global Judging
This project has been submitted for consideration during the Judging process.