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Access through your institution Buy or subscribe _Environ. Sci. Technol_. https://doi.org/ct96 (2018). Shungudzemwoyo Garaba, of the University of Oldenburg, in Germany, and colleagues
tested whether remote sensing using airborne infrared imagery could distinguish plastics in real-world conditions. Flying 400 m over the ‘Great Pacific Garbage Patch’, they recorded the
position, size, colour and type (such as container or fishing net) of plastic pieces and used the 30 largest within each type to identify spectral features characteristic of plastics. They
first identified plastics visually from airborne ‘true colour’ camera images and then geolocated them in the infrared images. They confirmed prior observations that marine plastics have a
characteristic infrared signature, absorbing light at ~1,215 and ~1,732 nm. Such airborne remote sensing could help to locate ocean plastic pollution and provide an intermediate step while
satellite sensing is better developed. This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution ACCESS OPTIONS Access through your institution Access Nature and 54 other Nature
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which are calculated during checkout ADDITIONAL ACCESS OPTIONS: * Log in * Learn about institutional subscriptions * Read our FAQs * Contact customer support AUTHOR INFORMATION AUTHORS AND
AFFILIATIONS * Nature Sustainability https://www.nature.com/natsustain William Burnside Authors * William Burnside View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed
Google Scholar CORRESPONDING AUTHOR Correspondence to William Burnside. RIGHTS AND PERMISSIONS Reprints and permissions ABOUT THIS ARTICLE CITE THIS ARTICLE Burnside, W. Remote sensing
plastics. _Nat Sustain_ 1, 534 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-018-0160-7 Download citation * Published: 15 October 2018 * Issue Date: October 2018 * DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-018-0160-7 SHARE THIS ARTICLE Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: Get shareable link Sorry, a shareable link is not
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