USQ’s world-class researchers are focussed on solving regional and global problems and challenges and pushing the boundaries of scientific discovery.
From helping to break down barriers for women in business in rural and remote parts of Australia to collaborating with manufacturing company John Deere to boost farm productivity, see below for the latest research updates.
Professor named President of World Meteorological Organisation’s Commission for Agricultural Meteorology
SQ Professor Roger Stone will provide strategic direction and guidance in agricultural meteorology for farmers and agribusiness around the world, in a global position with the United Nations’ World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).
Professor Stone was recently elected as a President of the WMO’s Commission for Agricultural Meteorology and is the first Australian to be selected for the role.
The four-year position will see Professor Stone lead the Commission, which will prioritise the need for better services for farmers and agribusiness (ranging from localised weather forecasts to seasonal climate outlooks) and better weather and climate risk management.
“There is a greater need than ever for the knowledge and expertise of agrometeorologists to assist farmers and the wider agricultural community and for more research and technology development in agrometeorology,” Professor Stone said.
“Now more than ever, we need to better prepare farmers for extremes of climate but also enable them to become more resilient.”
Photograph: USQ Professor Roger Stone (right) is congratulated by Dr Sayed Darani, Lead Delegate from Iran, after being elected President of World Meteorological Organization’s Commission for Agricultural Meteorology.
Astronomers begin planet observations following NASA’s TESS launch
USQ researchers will expand their role in the discovery and characterisation of worlds beyond Earth, following the successful launch of NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission recently.
The satellite launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center marks the start of the search for planets beyond the solar system and is expected to catalogue thousands of exoplanets.
While TESS will identify thousands of potential planets, follow-up observations by ground-based telescopes throughout the world will be vital in confirming the existence of those planets, and allowing us to learn more about them.
This is where USQ will play an important role, as host to the only Southern Hemisphere site fully dedicated to this work – the MINERVA-Australis project at the University’s Mount Kent Observatory.
“USQ’s involvement in TESS is a reflection of our global research focus and confirms that our astrophysics team is leading Australia’s role in the discovery of potentially habitable planetary systems,” USQ Vice-Chancellor Professor Geraldine Mackenzie said.
Photograph: An artist’s impression of TESS (Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center).
USQ researcher uncovers Shakespeare’s ‘Lost Playhouse’
It’s not often new facts come to light regarding “The Bard” but USQ researcher Professor Laurie Johnson has done just that.
Nine months of research, investigation and exploration has culminated in Shakespeare’s Lost Playhouse, a book that delves into an often forgotten about playhouse in the south of London and its important connection to Shakespeare.
The remains of the Newington Butts Playhouse, one of the earliest known Elizabethan theatres, are most likely lost, but Professor Johnson’s research indicates that the answer sits underneath a busy shopping centre in the south of London.
For centuries the Playhouse remained on the fringes of histories of Shakespeare’s career and of the golden age of the theatre with which his name is associated, but this is about to change thanks to Dr Johnson’s surprising findings.
“When people think of Shakespeare they often think of the Globe Theatre in London but tend not to think of many others. Shakespeare’s Lost Playhouse is about the discovery of the theatre at Newington Butts and the role it had in Shakespeare’s early career,” Professor Johnson said.
Photograph: USQ’s Professor Laurie Johnson has uncovered facts around an often forgotten about playhouse in the south of London and its important connection to Shakespeare.
USQ and John Deere partnership developing next generation of agricultural technology
University of Southern Queensland (USQ) AgTech research is helping shape the landscape of farming not just in Australia, but worldwide.
USQ researchers are exploring new intelligence-based technologies and solutions for the agricultural industry to deliver real value to farmers and change the way primary producers look at land management and production.
Thanks to an ongoing partnership with John Deere, USQ research is lifting farm productivity, developing the next generation of agricultural technology – including machine automation and control such as driverless tractors.
This global partnership with John Deere, along with investments from both USQ and various funding bodies, is helping provide a gateway for the commercialization of other technologies to take worldwide for applications such as automated weed management systems.
“This research partnership will not only benefit Australian communities but also international industries, which illustrates the global reach and relevance of USQ’s research efforts in agricultural engineering,” USQ Professor Craig Baillie said.
Photograph: Thanks to an ongoing partnership with John Deere, USQ research is lifting farm productivity and developing the next generation of agtech. USQ researchers, including Professor Craig Baillie (far right) and Dr Cheryl McCarthy, work directly with farmers like third generation broad-acre farmer John Bryce (left), to develop technologies that change the way primary producers look at land management and production.