The Role of Geoinformatics in Renewable Energy Potential Estimation for Smart Cities - Emphasis on Solar and Wind Energy

Smart cities aim to enhance and sustain the quality of life for its residents. The focus in this research is to examine the potential location of constructing smart cities based on a major aspect of the availability and abundance of renewable energy that can be harvested to sustain such a city, with emphasis on wind and solar energy. Potential estimation for such renewable energy resources is investigated. Geoinformatics involves integrating and processing of geospatial data obtained from different earth measurement technologies, along with the capability of integrating attribute data (e.g. socio-economic). The ability of Geoinformatics to involve various data input in the process of decision-making has made Geoinformatics a viable approach for energy potential estimation. The role of Geoinformatics in estimating the potential of renewable energy is crucial and spatial analysis is utilized to build relations between different input parameters to reach for a potential production of energy at specific location.