Spatial approaches, based on the deformation measurement of volcanic domes and crater rims, is key in evaluating the activity of a volcano, such as Merapi Volcano, where associated disaster risk regularly takes lives. Within this framework, this study aims to detect localized topographic change in the summit area that has occurred concomitantly with the dome growth and explosion reported. The methodology was focused on two sets of data, one LiDAR-based dataset from 2012 and one UAV dataset from 2014. The results show that during the period 2012–2014, the crater walls were 100–120 m above the crater floor at its maximum (from the north to the east–southeast sector), while the west and north sectors present a topographic range of 40–80 m. During the period 2012–2014, the evolution of the crater rim around the dome was generally stable (no large collapse). The opening of a new vent on the surface of the dome has displaced an equivalent volume of 2.04 × 10⁴ m³, corresponding to a maximum −9 m (+/−0.9 m) vertically. The exploded material has partly fallen within the crater, increasing the accumulated loose material while leaving “hollows” where the vents are located, although the potential presence of debris inside these vents made it difficult to determine the exact size of these openings. Despite a measure of the error from the two DEMs, adding a previously published dataset shows further discrepancies, suggesting that there is also a technical need to develop point-cloud technologies for active volcanic craters.

Lombok Island in Indonesia was hit by four major earthquakes (6.4 Mw to 7 Mw) and by at least 818 earthquakes between 29 July and 31 August 2018. The aims of this study are to measure ground deformation due to the 2018 Lombok earthquake series and to map its spatio-temporal distribution. The application of DinSAR was performed to produce an interferogram and deformation map. Time series Sentinel-1 satellite imageries were used as master and slave for each of these four major earthquakes. The spatio-temporal distribution of the ground deformation was analyzed using a zonal statistics algorithm in GIS. It focused on the overlapping area between the raster layer of the deformation map and the polygon layer of six observation sites (Mataram City, Pamenang, Tampes, Sukadana, Sembalun, and Belanting). The results showed that the deformation includes uplift and subsidence. The first 6.4 Mw foreshock hitting on 29 July 2018 produces a minimum uplift effect on the island. The 7.0 Mw mainshock on 5 August 2018 causes extreme uplift at the northern shore. The 6.2 Mw Aftershock on 9 August 2018 generates subsidence throughout the study area. The final earthquake of 6.9 Mw on 19 August 2018 initiates massive uplift in the study area and extreme uplift at the northeastern shore. The highest uplift reaches 0.713 m at the northern shore, while the deepest subsidence is measured −0.338 m at the northwestern shore. Dominant deformation on the northern area of Lombok Island indicates movement of Back Arc Trust in the north of the island. The output of this study would be valuable to local authorities to evaluate existing earthquake’s impacts and to design mitigation strategies to face earthquake-induced ground displacement.

The development of Jimbung Village, Klaten Regency, Central Java Province requires good spatial database to maximize its resources. However, GIS specialists who master GeoInformation Technology still need specific local knowledge so that the participation of local communities is extremely valuable. The objective of this research is to improve GIS products by incorporating local participation. We conducted aerial and surface observation within the village area in order to complete GIS database on village boundary delimitation, current potencies (industry, food and beverage, agriculture, tourism). Participatory Learning and Action was used to identify the future development of village. The results shows that Participatory Geoinformation Technology allows to clearly identify the industrial development, small medium enterprises on processed food, agricultural activity, and tourism in Jimbung village. Active participation from stakeholders can also help identify potential sectors that need to be developed in the future. This would be very important for local government while composing Middle Term Village Development Plan (RPJMDes).

Spatial approach based on the deformation measurement of volcanic dome and crater rim is key to evaluate the activity of a volcano, such as Merapi volcano where associated disaster risk is regularly taking lives. Within this framework, this study aime to detect localized deformation and change in the summit area that has occurred concomitantly with the dome growth and explosion reported. The methodology was focused on two sets of data, one LiDAR-based dataset of 2012 and one UAV-dataset of 2014. The results show that during the period 2012-2014, the crater walls are 100 m to 120 m high above the crater floor at its maximum (North to East-South-East sector), while the West and North sector presents a topographic range of 40 to 80 m. During the period 2012 – 2014, the evolution of the crater rim around the dome is generally stable (no large collapse). The opening of a new vent on the surface of the dome has displaced an equivalent volume of 2.04 E+04 m3 corresponding to a maximum -9 m (+/- 0.9 m) vertically. This concludes that during the period 2012 – 2014 when the dome of Merapi experienced phreatic or phreatomagmatic explosions, the topography around the dome rose. This rise does not seem to be related to large wall collapses, and it is likely that modification in the subsurface have triggered those changes.

Precipitation homogeneity is one of the main factors that contribute to the difference in the rain-rate estimation from meteorological satellites. Using the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) products, this paper aims to characterize the homogeneity of ice-scattering signals from TRMM Microwave Imagers (TMIs) as related to rain-rate estimation bias with TRMM Precipitation Radar (PR). Statistical information about the polarization-corrected brightness temperature (PCT) from the TMI 85 GHz band is obtained over the global ocean in the tropics. The characteristics are the fraction of PCT below a given threshold, the minimum value, and the standard deviation that are calculated at a 0.25° × 0.25°grid level. The average values of rain-rate estimation from TRMM PR and TMI in the same grid position and time are then compared. This result indicates that the rain-rate estimation bias is influenced by the homogeneity and organization of precipitation systems. Using the statistical signature of ice-scattering signals at the grid level, an adjustment was implemented for TMI rain-rate estimation. The results could produce rain-rate estimations that conform more to PR, particularly for the inhomogeneous precipitation system mostly affected by stratiform rain. The characterization of ice-scattering signals as a proxy to the precipitation homogeneity, as presented in this research, could be implemented in order to improve the accuracy of satellite rain-rate estimation in the future.