The Harlow Report-GIS
2026 Edition
ISSN 0742-468XSince 1978
On-line Since 2000
GIS News Snippets
For the week of
October 19, 2026
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A "Harlow Report" From October 20, 2025
Aerial vs. Drone: What the Power of Scale Can Do
Aerial vs. Drone: What the Power of Scale Can Do
by Vexal Blog
To help understand imagery choices, we're comparing aerial imagery collected by fixed-wing aircraft to other well-known options. We did a comparison against satellite recently and below is another evaluation of how Vexcel's aerial imagery compares against drone imagery.
Summary
There is a fundamental difference between aerial imagery and drone imagery, mainly related to scale nd productivity .
While drones are quick and useful for small-scale 4K footage, they cannot compete with dedicated aerial programs like Vexcel’s for large-scale, high-resolution mapping. Comparing them is like comparing apples and oranges.
A key difference is flight duration. High-performance drones typically max out at 60–90 minutes of flight time, requiring frequent landings. In stark contrast, Vexcel’s aircraft, equipped with sensors like the UltraCam Condor, can fly for over five continuous hours .
This massive productivity gap allows Vexcel’s program to capture entire cities or counties in a single, overlapping flight, ensuring high-quality imagery for better decision-making.
Read full story at Vexcel…
Now back to 2026
A GIS-Based Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis for Identifying Optimal Geothermal Power Plant Sites: A Case Study of the Gulf of Suez, Egypt
by Shimaa K. Gomaa, Marwa M. Eissa, Saif M. Abo Khashaba & Wael Mostafa
The Gulf of Suez is a geologically significant rift basin
Summary
The Gulf of Suez, Egypt, exhibits significant geothermal potential due to its Miocene-age formations and extensional tectonics.
This study utilizes a GIS-based multi-criteria decision analysis framework, incorporating thermal, geological, topographic, environmental, and infrastructural parameters, to identify optimal sites for geothermal power plant development.
The analysis reveals favorable conditions for both Flash Steam and Binary Cycle power plant technologies, with specific sites identified for each technology based on geothermal gradients and heat flow assessments.
Read full story at Nature
A Timely Reminder: How Map Projections Shape Our World
by Andreea Marin
Andreea Marin, geographer and cartographer at the University of Bucharest, explains why no flat map can render the Earth without distortion,
Summary
On September 4, 2026, the UN General Assembly voted 164–1, with six abstentions, for a resolution recommending equal-area map projections when relative size matters. The United States cast the sole opposing vote. The resolution neither bans nor replaces the Mercator projection; it encourages governments, schools, and technology companies to use projections like Equal Earth that preserve true surface-area proportions.
Andreea Marin explains that no flat map can preserve areas, distances, directions, and angles at once. Mercator, created in 1569 for navigation, preserves direction but inflates landmasses near the poles, making Greenland look similar in size to Africa. Gall-Peters preserves area but stretches shapes, while the 2018 Equal Earth projection balances accuracy with a pleasing appearance. Ultimately, no projection is wrong; each serves a different purpose.
Read full story at European Scientist
HERE Technologies Achieves AWS AI Competency
by HERE
HERE adds AWS AI Competency to existing AWS designations for Automotive and Supply Chain
Summary
HERE Technologies achieved the AWS AI Competency in the AI Software category, recognizing its expertise in implementing generative and autonomous AI systems enriched with location intelligence.
This designation highlights HERE's ability to help organizations build AI-powered applications and workflows that leverage location data for improved decision-making and automation.
HERE's location intelligence, combined with AWS technologies, enables businesses to transform complex location data into actionable intelligence across various industries.
Read full story at HERE
How MassDOT Made Drone Imagery Easy to Find, Trust, and Use
by Adam Carnow
MassDOT streamed 400 million lidar points to an iPad in the field over a 5G network, proving it could deliver an engineering-grade solution at the edge.
Summary
The Massachusetts Department of Transportation's Aeronautics Division runs a shared drone program serving all MassDOT divisions and partners like the MBTA. Early on, imagery was scattered across systems, lacked consistent standards, and caused bottlenecks and duplicated work. Sinan Abood, chief of data and analytics since 2023, responded by building the GIS-based Aeronautics Data Hub, a searchable system of record covering every mission since 2021.
Datasets now follow consistent naming and metadata, and all six districts request drone data, up from two. Weekly dashboards track flights and pilots, while crews use imagery for repair prioritization, emergency response, and environmental monitoring. The hub also streamed 10 miles of lidar, over 400 million points, to an iPad on 5G.
Read full story at Esri Blog
Topcon Releases Advanced Version of Delta Watch, Now Powered by GEOvis
by xyHt Staff
Topcon Positioning Systems announces Delta Watch powered by GEOvis, a cloud-based workflow platform that brings advanced visualization, reporting, alarms, project administration, stakeholder communication, and geodetic network adjustment into the Delta Solutions
Summary
Topcon has introduced Delta Watch, a monitoring platform developed with Amberg Infra 7D and based on GEOvis technology. It integrates automated and manually collected data from total stations, GNSS receivers, and geotechnical, structural, and environmental sensors. Teams can streamline workflows, improve accuracy through least-squares adjustment, and manage project data in one connected environment.
GIS-based spatial views and BIM/IFC 3D visualization show movement in context and link sensor data to physical assets, while automated dashboards and reports communicate project status.
Topcon's Ron Oberlander said the multi-sensor integration makes complex projects easier to manage. Delta Solutions supports monitoring of buildings, railways, tunnels, bridges, slopes, subsidence areas, and construction sites, helping users protect assets and decide faster.
Read full story at xyHt
Industry News
In Government
Experts Hope New AI Czar's Leadership Can Move the Needle on Regulation
by Edward Graham
“Maybe [the AI czar] can work with Congress to help come up with some governance, some laws” covering AI, one former Trump official told Nextgov/FCW.
Summary
President Trump appointed Jay Clayton as the AI czar to lead the “Super Intelligence Force,” a task force tasked with assessing AI risks and opportunities within 120 days.
The task force, which includes Vice President JD Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, aims to collaborate with Congress on potential AI regulations.
While Trump has expressed concerns about hindering U.S. competition with China, former officials hope the AI czar will guide responsible AI development and foster collaboration across government and commercial sectors.
Read full story at NextGov
Sometimes the Simplest Technology Is the Most Effective
by David Rau
Government agencies shouldn't need another platform to prepare official information for artificial intelligence.
Summary
Government agencies should not need new platforms to prepare information for AI.
Instead, existing publishing systems should be extended to incorporate AI-ready publishing, allowing agencies to continue communicating as usual while technology providers ensure their communications are understandable to AI systems.
This approach reduces complexity for agencies and integrates seamlessly into existing workflows.
Read full story at Route Fifty
To Comply with its Settlement, Meta Will Have to Age-Verify Everyone
by Tess Vartanian
Meta must know within a year which of its users are teens; that requires age assurance
Summary
A Center for Democracy & Technology analysis argues that Meta's settlement with state attorneys general, which requires age assurance for every Facebook and Instagram user in participating states, creates serious privacy and speech risks. Meta may use government ID checks, facial age estimation, or behavioral inference to sort users as under 13, 13–17, or adult. Users not assessed within 14 days are treated as teens.
CDT notes that the settlement caps errors in which minors pass as adults but sets no ceiling for adults wrongly classified as minors. Data-deletion safeguards are limited, and anonymity—which is protected under the First Amendment—is weakened. CDT also warns that enforcement pressure will push Meta toward more invasive verification.
Read full story at Center for Democracy and Technology
In Technology
by Maxwell Cooter
Free tier users are restricted to Gemini Flash Lite, while Gemini Pro is only for those paying big bucks.
Summary
Half of US consumers use AI services, but only 4.5% have a paid subscription to ChatGPT, Gemini or Claude, according to Andreessen Horowitz research. The top 10% of spenders account for roughly half of observed spending.
Google is responding by changing which Gemini models users can access. Starting October 9, free users will be limited to Gemini Flash Lite, while $4.99-per-month Google AI Plus subscribers keep Flash but lose Pro. Only AI Pro ($19.99) and AI Ultra (from $99.99) subscribers retain Gemini Pro access.
The shift reflects Google's push toward power users, since Andreessen Horowitz found Claude has already overtaken Gemini among consumers. The open question is whether users will pay.
Read full story at Computerworld
Google, GovTech Developing First-of-Its-Kind AI Model to Flag Scams in Real Time for Android Users
by Sarah Koh
The AI model aims to protect users from known scams without allowing any personal data to leave their devices.
Summary
Sarah Koh describes the development of a new AI model by Google DeepMind and the Singapore Government to detect scams in real time for Android users.
The model will be trained on local scam patterns and will not require users to share any personal data.
Read full story at The Straight Times
Zero-Days Lurk in Microsoft's Overgrown October Patch Tuesday
by Tara Seals,
The scary surprises in the largest security update ever include defense bypasses and unauthenticated RCEs.
Summary
Microsoft's October 2026 Patch Tuesday addressed a record 1,413 CVEs, up from 974 in September, including 80 critical flaws and two zero-days. One, CVE-2026-96951 in Windows Shell, is under active exploitation; it bypasses Mark of the Web protections and downstream controls like SmartScreen and Office Protected View. The other, a .NET Framework flaw, is considered less likely to be exploited.
Experts urge teams to focus on exploitability rather than volume. Fortra's Tyler Reguly notes only 26 Microsoft CVEs this year appear in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. AI-assisted discovery is accelerating disclosures, but ZDI's Dustin Childs says teams should patch what is “proven, prioritized, and public.” Priority fixes include critical flaws in Outlook, QUIC, and SQL Server.
Read full story at Dark Reading
In Utilities
10 States Generating the Most Solar Power in 2026
by Colleen Cabili
These 10 states dominate U.S. solar power generation in 2026, driven by utility-scale projects, policy support and falling panel costs
Summary
California generates more solar electricity than any other state, a lead built on large desert and valley solar farms in Kern, San Bernardino and Riverside counties plus the nation's biggest rooftop fleet. High retail rates, net metering and a 2020 building-code mandate drove residential growth. Midday oversupply, known as the duck curve, has pushed massive battery storage investment, though interconnection limits and reduced compensation have slowed growth.
North Carolina leads the Southeast thanks to a 2007 renewable standard and federal rules that made projects of five megawatts or less financeable. The result is hundreds of small arrays on leased rural farmland rather than giant plants. Duke Energy has since moved to competitive bidding, while rooftop solar remains a small share of output.
Read full story at Quartz
American Electric Power to Invest $4 Billion in Fuel Cell Project to Power Google
by Reuters
Shares of the utility company are up over 3.1% in premarket trading.
Summary
American Electric Power (AEP) will invest $4 billion in a 702-megawatt fuel cell project near Cheyenne, Wyoming, to supply Google under a 20-year power purchase agreement.
The project, developed by Cheyenne Fuel Cell, will use Bloom Energy technology and is expected to be operational by the end of 2028.
Read full story at Reuters
TVA Gets $250 Million From U.S. Department of Energy for Grid Upgrades
by Angela Dennis
Federal officials designate funds for transmission and power distribution projects in eight states
Summary
The U.S. Department of Energy awarded 250 million to the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) for grid upgrades.
The funds will help TVA deploy advanced technologies and make its system more efficient and reliable.
Angela Dennis also mentions that the grants are part of the GRIP program, which aims to help the grid withstand extreme weather and other disruptions.
Read full story at Tennessee Lookout
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