On January 31, 2026, UF’s Geospatial Digital Informatics (GeoDI) Lab hosted the EMERGE NASA Data Hackathon at Marston Science Library, bringing together students, researchers, library staff, and community members to transform real environmental data into tools for public health decision-making.
13 teams competed across 5 tracks (Beginner to Advanced). The hackathon is funded by NASA through the Citizen Science Seed Funding Program, whose goal is to organize workshops from globally recognized participatory science leaders.
Participants worked with GLOBE Observer—NASA’s community science platform—analyzing real-world data on mosquito habitats, land cover, and environmental patterns. Teams created impressive projects including an “Epidemiological Vector Mapping System,” mosquito risk predictors, and user interface improvements for NASA’s data collection app.
Led by Dr. Di Yang, the event included Dr. Caroline Nickerson, a globally recognized participatory science expert, Dr. Yichan Li from the GeoDI Lab, Peder Nelson from Oregon State University, Natya Hans, an Informatics and Reproducibility Librarian at George A. Smathers Libraries, and Joseph Aufmuth, UF Library’s Geospatial Consultant.
The GeoDI Lab created a comprehensive digital textbook teaching participants to download, process, and analyze citizen science data—resources that will support environmental education far beyond the event. Winners produced tools with real applications for mosquito-borne disease surveillance and environmental monitoring.
The success has sparked plans for future hackathons, with organizers now recruiting a planning committee. The event demonstrated the Geography Department’s commitment to making geospatial science accessible and actionable for communities.
This hackathon exemplifies UF Geography’s focus areas in Medical Geography in Global Health, Earth System Science, and Geospatial Analysis & Techniques—connecting cutting-edge research with real-world community impact.
View all hackathon projects and learn more at: https://geoemerge.com/nasa-at-uf/
