ISPRS Technical Commission IV Mid-term Symposium 2024: Preface

Commission IV is dedicated to advancing spatial modeling and enhancing the interoperability of geospatial data fusion, with a strong emphasis on exploring open data and software.The Commission's intensive research activities cover areas such as spatial analysis, data quality, uncertainty modeling, and artificial intelligence, leading to the development of cutting-edge tools.Its members are committed to high-performance geo-computation, the integration of crowdsourced data, the Internet of Things (IoT), and communitydriven intelligent systems.The focus on indoor/outdoor services, spatial data management, visual analytics, and virtual/augmented reality aligns with the overarching goal of Technical Commission IV (TC IV) to create human-cantered applications.The Commission's work significantly contributes to urban modelling, sustainable decision-making, and the application of spatial information across various fields, all in alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) for global impact.In today's rapidly evolving world, digital twin models of reality are increasingly essential for governments and businesses to address environmental and socio-economic challenges while promoting sustainable development.The growing need for effective decisionmaking in dynamic environments underscores the importance of complex, multi-dimensional geospatial data.Digital twins and the metaverse have emerged as pivotal technologies, enabling the testing and analysis of intricate systems and overcoming challenges such as data discovery, visualization, sharing, fusion, analysis, and simulation, alongside managing large-scale multidimensional data with geoAI models.As the world changes, digital representations of reality are becoming critical tools for governments and businesses to understand and manage environmental and socio-economic issues, drive sustainable development, and reduce emissions.The increasing pressure on living and working spaces further necessitates decisions based on complex, multi-dimensional spatial data.Digital twins have become a crucial technology, providing a platform for testing and analyzing complex systems that would be impossible to evaluate with traditional simulators and modular assessments.However, the development of such technology faces significant challenges, including the discovery, sharing, fusion, analysis, and simulation of spatial information, the availability of data to train machine learning models, and the management and visualization of large multidimensional datasets.The ISPRS TC IV 'Spatial Information Sciences' is dedicated to advancing spatial information science, enabling the development of spatial digital twins, and empowering their evolution into the metaverse.The Commission addresses several key challenges, including multidimensional modeling, data fusion, open data, big data management, spatial analysis and simulation, mixed reality, and advanced interfaces.With a four-year mandate (2022-2026), the Commission's research and development activities are carried out by 11 Working Groups and two Inter-Commission Working Groups, coordinated by 55 ISPRS officers and over 100 members.The ISPRS Technical Commission IV Symposium serves as a platform for researchers and practitioners to share their work and ideas, discuss opportunities and challenges, exchange developments or software tools, and explore future directions.The symposium also provides an excellent opportunity for networking and fostering connections between academia, governments, businesses, and young and emerging professionals in the geospatial sciences.The Commission's activities are organized into 11 Working Groups (WG) and two Inter-Commission Working Groups.WG 1 (Spatial Data Representation and Interoperability) focuses on spatial data representation and interoperability, emphasizing international standards, best practices for data management, and collaboration with standardization organizations.WG 2 (Artificial Intelligence and Uncertainty Modeling in Spatial Analysis) explores artificial intelligence and uncertainty modeling in spatial analysis, covering data mining, machine learning, spatial statistics, and uncertainty visualization.WG 3 (Geo-computation and Geosimulation) is centered on geo-computation and geo-simulation, investigating high-performance techniques, knowledge-based methods, and their effective integration into spatial decision support systems.WG 4 (Data Management for Spatial Scenarios) addresses data management for spatial scenarios, focusing on interfaces, standards, and strategies for managing large and heterogeneous geospatial datasets.WG 5 (Extended Reality and Visual Analytics) explores human factors, geo-visualization evaluations, and innovative tools for exploring complex phenomena.WG 6 (Human Behavior and Spatial Interactions) delves into understanding human behavior and spatial interactions, addressing models, uncertainties, spatial analysis technologies, and strategies for handling geo-privacy and ethical concerns.WG 7 (Intelligent Systems in Sensor Web and IoT) focuses on intelligent systems in the sensor web and IoT, covering sensor data fusion and new analysis methods.WG 8 (Digital Twins for Mobility and Navigation) concentrates on digital twins for mobility and navigation, with an emphasis on conceptual frameworks, algorithms, standards, and solutions for sustainable and resilient mobility.WG 9 (Spatially Enabled Urban and Regional Digital Twins) focuses on AI-based methods and BIM/GIS integration.WG 10 (Applied Spatial Science for Public Health) covers spatial technologies, citizen science, AI for hotspot detection, and multidimensional data handling for health.WG 11 (Cultural Heritage Visualization and Virtual Restoration) addresses cognition, data integration, deterioration monitoring, deep learning, digital storytelling, and sustainable development.ICWG IV/III (Global Mapping for SDGs) tackles challenges in geospatial information use and innovative methods for