Maps, Apps, and Drones at UCF STEM Day

Students from all over the city came to UCF’s campus to take part in a STEM Day event. There was a multitude of STEM related events to take part in and our Citizen Science GIS team got to be one of these locations. Students learned about the meaning of GIS and how it is used by our research team to take pictures of the islands of Belize. Students also were taught the various other uses for drones other than imagery, including to bring supplies to a remote area after a natural disaster.   Not only did students get to learn about our team’s use of drones, but each one of them got the chance to be a pilot of a drone. Also, students got to use the virtual reality headsets to see some of the drone imagery taken by the Belize team. In the footage the islands of Belize were shown from the perspective of a drone, allowing the students to see GIS in action.  Overall, the goal of our team putting together this event was to open students up to one of the various ways GIS is used. Not only that, but the mission of STEM Day in general is to get the youth of today excited about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, as well as opening some career options for the future. It is important for students to find out what their interests are—regardless of the field—so that they can come towards learning new things with an excited spirit.