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KATHMANDU, Oct 5: Participants at a symposium Monday aired the view that Earth Observation was one of the keys to improving scientific knowledge and understanding of the climate change phenomena in the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region.

Inaugurating the symposium, Chairman of the Constituent Assembly Subas Chandra Nembang acknowledged that the Earth Observation provides “unique opportunities for assessing key variables [of climate change]”. “The country should promote its use for improved scientific knowledge and assessing climate change in the region.”

Earth Observation is the spatial visualization of maps and spatial analysis which helps transform data into useful information. It can also track changes due to different climactic conditions, said Jose Achache, secretary of the Group on Earth Observations, an intergovernmental group of 83 member countries and 58 participating organizations coordinating Earth Observation.

“Space observation can be very important in disaster-mapping,” he said.

Andreas Schild, director general of International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), said the symposium’s aim is to bridge the gap between technology and the community and to make connection between data users in order to better understand what is happening.

“This could develop specific mountain perspectives, develop niches and be particularly useful for stakeholders,” he added.

The Hindu Kush region, which stretches 3,500 kilometers across eight countries, is considered as the “third pole” and a major source of water for about 210 million people. However, experts said changing climate and rising temperatures have posed major threats for the region.

To observe these problems more efficiently, the USAID and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has partnered with ICIMOD to launch SERVIR-Himalaya today, which is expected to integrate satellite observations system and ‘predictive’ models with other geographic information system to monitor and forecast ecological changes. When installed, Nepal is going to be SERVIR’s third station after Central America and Africa.

Thakur Prasad Sharma, minister for Environment, said, SERVIR-Himalaya will be an important milestone and the data gathered from Earth Observation will help derive information and support in the decision-making.

Meanwhile, India’s Minister for Environment and Forest, Jairam Ramesh, said climate change in the HKH region is a ‘common concern.’ “India is keen on working with Nepal regarding climate change,” he said.

He said that India will be a part of the solution for global warming and take responsibility very seriously.

“India’s 60 percent of land is monsoon-dependent. More than 300 million live in peninsula area and are vulnerable to rising sea-level, and forest areas are depleting,” he added.

“The eco-restoration and biodiversity program initiated by India, Nepal and China in Mt Kailash is a good starting point for collaboration,” he said, adding, “The launch of greenhouse gases and aerosol monitoring system by 2012 and forestry satellite to measure and monitor on a real time daily basis by mid-2013 can benefit the region.”

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VisionMap Ltd announced today Oct 6 the availability of its newest product, the A3 CIR large format digital camera. A3 CIR (color-IR) provides near-infrared imagery (NIR) in combination with high resolution color imagery.

The new product leverages A3’s well known superior collection efficiency as well as the complimentary fully automated workflow provided by the A3 Processing System.

In contrast to other camera systems, A3 CIR does not require pan-sharpening of NIR imagery. The native resolution of its NIR imagery is identical to the resolution of its color imagery, providing extremely high resolution NIR imagery for the first time. The capability to efficiently collect and process very high resolution CIR imagery over vast areas is exceptionally useful for the agriculture and forestry market segments.

About VisionMap

VisionMap LTD is a leading provider of state-of-the-art digital aerial survey and mapping systems. VisionMap created an innovative data acquisition and data processing system which optimizes mapping work, setting a new standard for productivity in the Geospatial data industry. VisionMap systems are successfully deployed worldwide. For more information visit www.visionmap.com

UNOOSA/UN-SPIDER Senior Expert Jörg Szarzynski participated in the High Level Conference “Space for the African Citizen” in Brussels.

Organized by the Belgian High Representation for Space Policy under the auspices of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the main goal of the Conference was to demonstrate the relevance of space technologies as a transversal tool to favor development and growth, to facilitate good resource management, and to contribute to the preparation and the implementation of the policies in various fields, such as health, education, agriculture, and transport. Major discussion points during this meeting were 1.) the concept and establishment of an African Space Agency, 2.) a Pan-African University Institute on Space Science, and 3.) current and future projects in Africa such as AMESD, TIGER and especially GMES for Africa.

Mr. Szarzynski was also invited to participate in the preceeding High Level Policy Meeting on Space to present a statement on behalf of UNOOSA. This meeting was specifically intended as a discussion forum between high-level representatives from Europe and from Africa. During this meeting Report No. 26 of the European Space Policy Institute (ESPI), called: “European-African Partnership in Satellite Applications for Sustainable Development – A Comprehensive Mapping of European-African Actors and Activities”, was distributed to the participants. Within this report UNOOSA/UN-SPIDER is mentioned on pp. 56 – 58. The report is available on the ESPI website

Report

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Addis Ababa — The UN Office for Outer Space Affairs and the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) have agreed to promote the use of scientific information obtained from space-based facilities to better manage disasters in Africa, during a three-day meeting in Addis Ababa last summer

The plan to reach out to policymakers and popularise the use of space technologies for disaster management in Africa could help curb disasters such as pest outbreaks and floods.

According to Makena Faye, the UN Officer in charge of e-Applications at UNECA, policymakers need to be made aware of the potential of space technologies to improve people’s daily lives.

“Despite the importance of space science and technology in generating and applying knowledge, they have still not aroused political interest, and many African policymakers do not see this area in a long-term perspective required to enable investment in the needed infrastructure,” Aida Opoku-Mensah, director of UNECA’s ICT, Science and Technology Division told SciDev.Net.

“Some countries in Africa have already embarked on developing operational national space programmes,” said Opoku-Mensah. “Among them are Algeria, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa.”

“These countries have launched at least one earth observation satellite. Nigeria, for example, established the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) in 1998 and developed a 25-year roadmap for the Nigeria space programme,” she said.

South Africa is developing its astronomy and space sector, and has established the South African Space Agency to co-ordinate its efforts in space science and technology. Others countries, like Morocco, are also developing a policy to launch a space programme.

But Opoku-Mensah said space technology was still not considered important among policymakers in many other parts of Africa.

The need for better coordination between the space science and disaster management communities in Africa was also highlighted in the meeting.

Juan Carlos Villagrán de León, programme officer at the UN Platform for Space-based Information for Disaster Management and Emergency Response, said space-based informationcan play a role in emergency response in Africa, as it has done in many other countries in cases of floods, locust swarms, and drought.

“At present, countries like, Namibia, Burkina Faso, Togo, Mozambique and Kenya are making progress in the use of space technologies,” he said.

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The Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. (OGC®) and the International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance the development and use of geospatial standards.

(August 2010). Under the agreement the two organizations will work cooperatively to raise the awareness, acceptance, and implementation of open standards and to promote educational programs and best practices that benefit the memberships of ISPRS and OGC and practitioners worldwide. This will involve Global Earth Observing System of Systems (GEOSS) demonstrations and workshops, sensor network standardization events, and events on topics such as multi-source data fusion and multi-spectral image processing. They will seek resources and partnerships to advance joint OGC testbeds, pilot projects, and experiments that address such topics, and they will encourage cooperation between the members of the OGC Working Groups and ISPRS Commissions.

“This is an important step forward for the global remote sensing community,” explained Mark Reichardt, President and CEO of the OGC. “OGC benefits from the ISPRS’s century of industry stewardship and experience. Members and stakeholders of the ISPRS will benefit from closer ties with those who are developing open standards that improve application of diverse technologies for observing and measuring Earth features and phenomena.”

According to Orhan Altan, president of ISPRS, “The joint activities of OGC and ISPRS will strengthen the ISPRS involvement in standards and interoperability and will allow the ISPRS Working Groups to have input into OGC projects.”

About the ISPRS

The ISPRS is a non-governmental organization devoted to the development of international cooperation for the advancement of knowledge, research, development education and training in photogrammetry, remote sensing and their applications, and to contribute to the well-being of humanity and the sustainability of the environment.

About the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC®)

The OGC® is an international consortium of more than 395 companies, government agencies, research organizations, and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available geospatial standards. OGC Standards empower technology developers to make geospatial information and services accessible and useful with any application that needs to be geospatially enabled.

Visit the OGC website at www.opengeospatial.org/contact

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-Name: FP7-SPACE-2011-1
-Application deadline: 25/11/10
-General description:
FP7 Space objective is to support a European Space Policy focusing on applications such as GMES (Global Monitoring for Environment and Security), with benefits for citizens, but also other space foundation areas for the competitiveness of the European space industry. This will contribute to fulfil the overall objectives of the European Space Policy, complementing efforts of Member States and of other key players, including the European Space Agency.

-Project Type: Collaborative Project

-call topics:
Space-based applications at the service of European Society
Strengthening of Space foundations
Cross-cutting activities

-“Read More”:http://www2.technion.ac.il/~liaison/mails/calls/FP7Calls200710/space.pdf

-Indicative Budget: 99 M €

-Further Information:
-“Official Call Documents”:http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/dc/index.cfm?fuseaction=UserSite.CooperationDetailsCallPage&call_id=334
-“Detailed Work Program”:http://www2.technion.ac.il/%7Eliaison/fp7/work-programs/space2011.pdf
Source: European union
-“related funds”:http://www.trdf.co.il/eng/fundinfo.php?id=105

A new, easy-to-use online interface for TerraSAR-X Archive Data ordering is now up-and-running on Infoterra GmbH’s website.

In order to introduce this uniquely user-friendly tool, Infoterra offers an additional discount of 50% on any archive scene ordered through the TerraSAR-X Online Archive throughout the month of October, independent of acquisition mode and date.*

The new TerraSAR-X Online Archive enables the user to search for available TerraSAR-X Archive Data for any area of interest on the Globe, optionally applying specific search criteria as needed. Scenes can easily be selected, reviewed, and submitted as a request for proposal to Infoterra’s Customer Service Team, who will promptly follow up with the customer.

The significant discount offered in October leads to prices that are up to 75% below those of a new acquisition – an excellent opportunity to stock up on past data of current areas of interest, e.g. for a thorough monitoring or detailed change analyses dating back to January 2008.

  • offer valid for archive scenes ordered 01.10.2010 to 31.10.2010. A discount of 50% to the prices as published in the TerraSAR-X Int’l. Pricelist applies. Discount may not be combined with any other discounts.

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Monday 4 October, a reservoir burst its banks at an alumina plant in Ajka, Hungary, releasing a flood of some 1.1 million cubic metres of toxic residues.

Kolontar, the village nearest the reservoir, was immediately engulfed by a torrent of red sludge.

Zoltan Illes, Hungary’s Secretary of State for Environmental Affairs, visited Kolontar the day after the spill, calling it an “environmental disaster”.

EADS Astrium subsidiary Spot Image tasked the FORMOSAT-2 satellite to acquire imagery of the disaster area. A first image centred on the reservoir and nearby villages arrived on 7 October, clearly showing the breached western flank of the reservoir and the extent of the spill in Kolontar.

Image

Source SpotImage

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The International symposium with an exhibition was organized by the Union of Surveyors and Land Managers in Bulgaria, under the auspices and in close cooperation with eminent international geodetic and others organizations.

The Symposium carried on the established tradition of knowledge exchange and experience in the filed of geodesy, photogrammetry, cadastre and cartography, GNSS and GIS and related fields, as well as of keeping a close regional cooperation among European countries mainly.
The Twentieth International Symposium <- Modern technologies, education and professional practice in geodesy and related fields -> was held in Albena resort, Flamingo Grand Hotel.

This year ReSAC participated with the oral presentation about “EU GMES PROGRAMME AND GEOLAND2 – PRE-OPERATIONAL LAND MONITORING SERVICE OF GMES” under Seventh Framework Program of EU for research and technological development (priority “SPACE”). The role of ReSAC in relation to the program for the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security was presented. Attention was paid to the three core services of the Geoland2 project that will be provided by ReSAC. These are Seasonal/Annual Terrestrial Change Monitoring (SATChMo); Spatial Planning, Agri-Environment Monitoring.

Source Resac

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