Haruhisa Shimoda of Tokai University in Japan, passed away 9 March at the age of 74.
An SPIE member since 1995, Shimoda served as conference chair/co-chair for the SPIE Remote Sensing symposium as well as on program and symposium committees for that event. As an SPIE author and editor, Shimoda published several SPIE Proceedings papers on astronomical/remote sensing instruments and systems (see below).
SPIE Fellow Upendra N. Singh, NASA Technical Fellow for Sensors and Instrumentation at NASA Langley Research Center, worked with Shimoda for over 20 years as symposium chair for SPIE Asia Pacific Remote Sensing Symposium (1998-2018). Shimoda served in various capacities for this symposium, including as a member of the steering and international organizing committees, and as chair/co-chair.
"In the loss of Dr. Shimoda, the Japanese and international remote sensing community has lost a "GIANT" of an international leader," says Singh. "Dr. Shimoda's incessant energy, enthusiasm, presence, leadership, and his vision for active and passive remote sensing will be missed. For decades, Dr. Shimoda represented Japan in all international remote sensing meetings, whether sponsored by SPIE, OSA, IEEE, GEOSS, or CEOS. He exhibited broad leadership for active and passive remote sensing space missions and contributed significantly in forging international collaboration of Japanese Aerospace and Exploration Agency (JAXA) with other space agencies around the world. The world remote sensing community will miss Dr. Shimoda. My sincere condolences are for his family, colleagues and friends."
Steve Neeck, Deputy Associate Director of Flight Programs at NASA notes that Shimoda's career spanned space-based remote sensing from its infancy to its current state. He was a key player in the maturation of Japanese capabilities through his involvement in many projects.
"Professor Shimoda was the epitome of remote sensing leadership in Japan and internationally. His career spanned space based remote sensing from its infancy to its current mature state," says Neeck. "He was a key player in the maturation of Japanese capabilities through his involvement in many projects."
A memorial for Shimoda is currently being planned for the next Remote Sensing and Security + Defence symposia 9-12 September in Strasbourg, France.
"I have very much enjoyed working with Professor Shimoda through the years, and will miss seeing him at the Remote Sensing meetings," says Alex P. Rusova, Conference Program Coordinator with SPIE Eurrope. "His unyielding and continued support and contributions to the success of the Sensors, Systems, and Next-Generation Satellites Conference have been widely recognized and greatly appreciated."
Overview of vegetation Lidar "MOLI"
