A research team from the Aerospace Information Research Institute (AIR) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) released Africa's first high-resolution rice distribution map at 20-meter resolution. This 2023 dataset, published in Earth System Science Data, marks a significant milestone in agricultural monitoring, providing full coverage of African countries with national-level rice cultivation areas exceeding 5,000 hectares. This study provides a critical data foundation for tracking food security across the continent and globally.

The Aerospace Information Research Institute（AIR）of the Chinese Academy of Sciences unveiled four pioneering technological achievements in city Jinan, Shandong Province, China on April 19, 2025. These breakthroughs aim to accelerate Shandong's leadership in the rapidly evolving low-altitude economy—a sector set to transform industries such as drone logistics, emergency response, and urban air mobility through safe and efficient use of airspace below 3000 meters.

A recent study has unveiled an innovative data-driven model that disentangles human-induced and natural water consumption in croplands, shedding new light on the sustainability of arid lake ecosystems. By harnessing the power of remote sensing and machine learning, the research quantifies the impact of agricultural expansion on water resources, offering a crucial blueprint for balancing irrigation demands with environmental conservation. This innovation provides policymakers and conservationists with a powerful tool to mitigate water scarcity and prevent the disappearance of critical freshwater lakes.

A research team from the Aerospace Information Research Institute (AIR) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has released a long-term and high-resolution dataset that tracks global cropland water-use efficiency (WUE) from 2001 to 2020. Published in Scientific Data, the dataset offers annual WUE estimates for croplands worldwide at a 1-km spatial resolution. It is expected to become a valuable resource for promoting sustainable agricultural water management.

Researchers from the Aerospace Information Research Institute (AIR) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed a new method for mapping carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions across Nanchang, the capital city of Jiangxi province in eastern China, providing a clearer picture of the city's carbon footprint. Their findings were recently published in the International Journal of Digital Earth.

Scientists from the Aerospace Information Research Institute (AIR) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), in collaboration with Shihezi University, have developed a new method for grading cotton Verticillium wilt (VW). This method correlates with yield loss and is suitable for remote sensing monitoring to assess VW severity. Their research has been recently published in Agricultural and Forest Meteorology.