Skip to content

Two new FP7 projects lead by EUROSENSE, Malareo and Reddiness, have started in February 2011. Both have a duration of two years and are dedicated to the international cooperation between several European and African partners.

2 new FP7 projects lead by EUROSENSE, Malareo and Reddiness, have started in February 2011. Both have a duration of two years and are dedicated to the international cooperation between several European and African partners.

MALAREO

Malareo is focusing to develop technology and implement earth observation data that contributes to the fight against malaria in southern Africa. MALAREO compiles a mixed European-African consortium that combines years of experience in malaria control with GMES Earth Observation (EO) capacity.

The project aims to build the fundaments of a malaria EO monitoring cell that will support a more efficient, effective and wider malaria vector control programme in South-Africa, Swaziland and Mozambique and at the same time contributes to research on malaria and EO. The consortium is well-equipped and highly skilled to achieve the MALAREO project objectives. It is a good mixture of SME’s, universities and administrations uniting remote sensing experts with epidemiology experts and public health specialists from 3 European partners and three Southern African partners. Project partners are the Medical Research Council and the University of KwaZulu-Natal from S-Africa, the National Malaria Control Program of Swaziland, Remote Sensing Solutions from Germany and the Schweizerische Tropen- und Public Health- Institut from Switzerland. The consortium will work in very close collaboration with the local end-users which are the Lubombo Spatial Development Initiative and the Malaria Control Programme of Mozambique.

REDDINESS

As part of international efforts to combat global warming, preserving Africa’s forest is a part of the solution to the climate change challenge. Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) negotiations for climate change mitigation aim to better manage our global forest resources.

The European Commission project called Reddiness, led by Eurosense, helps monitoring Gabon and the Republic of Congo in their commitment to reducing the annual rate of deforestation from 0.19 to 0.10 percent. Reddiness relies on Central African regional actors to assist Gabon and the Republic of Congo in improving their readiness to join potential carbon payment schemes. The project responds to the EC call for increased collaboration between African and European partners through Specific International Cooperation Action (SICA).

Project partners are the Faculty of Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation of the University of Twente(The Netherlands), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (France), Observatoire Satellital des Forêts d’Afrique Centrale (Republic Democratic Congo), Centre National d’Inventaire et d’Aménagement des Ressources Forestières et Fauniques (Republic of the Congo) & Ministère des Eaux et Forêts (Gabon).

Main office: EUROSENSE
Nerviërslaan 54, B-1780 WEMMEL, BELGIUM
Tel.: +32 2 460 70 00 – Fax.: +32 2 460 49 58
info@eurosense.com

Presentation of WALPHOT at the International Conference “Data flow from space to earth: application and interoperability” in Venice on this 23rd of March. Paper untitled “GEO-SERVICES USING EARTH OBSERVATION (EO) AND ANCILLARY DATA IN PREVENTION OF SEVESO DIRECTIVE: 3WSA PROJECT (Wallonia World Wide Space Applications)” .

In response to the European Union SEVESO directive, industrial operators and public security services have to plan emergency scenarios. WALPHOT developed user friendly geo-information on potential adverse impacts of accidents such as physical/environmental damage, pollution and potential victims according to the vicinity of transport infrastructure (rivers, railways, airports) or high density of population. This rapid mapping tool is presented at the International Conference “Data flow from space to earth: application and interoperability” in Venice on this 23rd of March.

Figure: Walphot-Esri Rapid mapping tool developed in 3WSA project for the site of Engis, Belgium

INSPIRE-GEOPORTAL

Planetek Italia Srl, the Joint Research Centre and lat/lon would like to announce to the European audience the launch of the activities for the new European INSPIRE Geoportal, the reference portal for European and Member States National Environmental geoinformation.

Please find here attached our Press Release with all the information.
For any further information, please feel free to contact us or visit our website.

http://www.planetek.it/eng/projects/inspire_geoportal

(Source Planetek)

News from February, March and April 2011…


A New Reseller for RapidEye: Hatfield Group, April 14, 2011

RapidEye, the only geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites, announced today it has added Hatfield Consultants of Vancouver, Canada to its growing list of resellers. The recently signed contract between the two companies allows the Hatfield group to market and sell RapidEye products in Canada and the United States.

“This cooperation will help us to further strengthen our key position in the geo-environmental industry; not only in North America, but also in Africa and Asia,” commented Joerg Widmer, Market Manager USA West. “We are very happy to begin working on new opportunities around the globe with Hatfield Consultants and their network. We will specifically concentrate on sectors like REDD and carbon sequestration; industries which we feel have great growth potential for the future. One of RapidEye’s strongest selling points is our ability to image large areas of the globe in a very short time period. This will help Hatfield monitor rural developments and detect important environmental changes.”

More Info

Iunctus Geomatics Joins RapidEye’s Distribution Network, April 7, 2011

RapidEye, the only geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites, announced today that the Canadian company Iunctus Geomatics Corporation will join RapidEye’s growing distribution network. The agreement authorizes Iunctus to distribute RapidEye products in the United States and Canada.

“We really look forward to our new partnership with Iunctus,” said RapidEye’s Vice President John Ahlrichs. “They have a great sales team with deep partnerships in the government and commercial sectors that should result in sales for RapidEye. In addition, as a diversified company, we see many opportunities to develop future business partnerships.”

More info

RapidEye Signs Distribution Agreement with African Company Ramani, March 31, 2011

RapidEye, the only geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites, announced today that it has signed a distribution agreement with Ramani Geosystems located in Kenya.

The contract allows Ramani to distribute RapidEye products throughout the entire continent of Africa except Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia and Western Sahara.

“Ramani is our first sub-Saharan distributor and we are very excited about expanding our awareness an finding new customers on this continent,“ commented John Ahlrichs, Vice President of RapidEye. “Ramani’s market position in East Africa, their willingness to form partnerships with other companies and their interest in agressively promoting our data products were impressive and significant factors in our decision making process.“

More info

RapidEye Has Collected ‘Lion’s Share’ of Africa, March 29, 2011

RapidEye, the only geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites, announced today that it has recently completed an extensive imagery campaign over Africa.

The campaign, which ran for 25 weeks from September of 2010 until March 1, 2011, produced over 107 Million km² of the continent of Africa which is now available for purchase from the RapidEye Library.

“This is another amazing demonstration of what our system is capable of achieving,” commented Michael Oxfort, RapidEye’s Head of Engineering. “We tasked our satellites to acquire over 4,200 takes over the entire continent of Africa. Many areas of rainforest, such The Democratic Republic of the Congo, have been collected with great success and very little cloud cover.”

More info

RapidEye Satellites Immediately Directed to Japan, March 12, 2011

RapidEye, the only geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites, announced today that the first images of Japan following the tsunami and the preceding 8.8 magnitude earthquake are now available.

The Center for Satellite Based Crisis Information (ZKI) which is part of the German Aerospace Agency (DLR) contacted RapidEye shortly following the breaking news of the earthquake and resulting tsunami that hit Japan on Friday. The DLR is a member of the International Charter which is an organization working towards providing a unified system of space data acquisition to those affected by natural and man-made disasters.

The International Charter was activated on Friday by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). They will be using all the imagery and resulting analysis to provide as much knowledge about the disaster to the relief and governmental agencies who need it.

Additional before and after images available here

More info

Fugro NPA RapidEye’s First Distributor in the UK, March 11, 2011

RapidEye, the only geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites, announced today that Fugro NPA Ltd. has signed an agreement with RapidEye to be its first reseller in the UK covering the territories of Britain and Ireland.

John Ahlrichs, Vice President of RapidEye commented, “Fugro NPA is a great addition to our distribution network. Their long history supporting the British market in addition to their leading role as a geospatial center of excellence with the Fugro Group will increase availability and use of our imagery worldwide.” David Morten, Managing Director of Fugro NPA said, “We are pleased to have been selected to be part of the RapidEye distributor network and expand our satellite data solutions, in particular our ability to offer enhanced monitoring service capabilities.”

More info

RapidEye Completes Second Coverage of China in Two Years, February 17, 2011

RapidEye, the only geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites, announced today that the second coverage of China for the Ministry of Land and Resources (MLR) in as many years has been delivered.

The imagery campaign, which ran from August 1, 2010 through January 11, 2011 was intended to cover almost 5.8 Million square kilometers; 60% of the country. The project was successfully delivered and accepted by the MLR in the first week of February.

“The MLR was so impressed with RapidEye’s quick coverage and delivery of the country during the 2009-2010 growing season that when discussing an additional coverage this year, RapidEye was the obvious choice,“ said Sun Bing, CEO of Beijing East Dawn Information Technology Co., Ltd (EDIT), RapidEye’s Chinese distributor.

More info

About RapidEye AG

RapidEye is an ISO-certified geospatial information provider focused on integrating customized and industry specific solutions into the workflow of global customers in agriculture, forestry, energy, infrastructure, government, security and emergency.

RapidEye experts and the satellite system – a constellation of five satellites capable of downloading over 4 million km² of high resolution, multi-spectral imagery per day, and a ground segment for processing and archiving data – allow for cost-effective customized services. The unique combination of large area coverage, high spatial resolution and the possibility of daily revisit to an area provide for superior management information solutions. Currently, more than 130 experts from more than 20 countries are employed by RapidEye.

For more information about RapidEye, please visit www.rapideye.de.

Contact
RapidEye AG
Molkenmarkt 30
14776 Brandenburg a. d. Havel, Germany
Toll Free (US): +1 800 940 3617
Phone: +49 3381 8904-0 | Fax: +49 3381 8904-101 | info@rapideye.de | www.rapideye.de
press@rapideye.de
Follow us on Twitter @rapideye_ag and be informed about all latest news and updates from RapidEye.

Toulouse – April 7, 2011 – Astrium GEO-Information Services (formerly Spot Image) is pleased to announce the release of one of our latest SPOTMAPS coverage, SPOTMAPS Saudi Arabia.


  • SPOTMAPS Saudi Arabia, a 2010 coverage at 2.5 metres resolution, is now available
  • In the past 3 years, Spot Image, part of the GEO-Information division of Astrium Services, has produced more than 80 million square km of SPOTMAPS, seamless, natural colour and orthorectified 2.5m mosaics
  • Off-the-shelf SPOTMAPS covering more than 100 countries can be purchased by the square kilometre. Updates and fresh data are made available regularly

870 tiles were processed from 962 SPOT 5 cloud free scenes, acquired in 2010 at a resolution of 2.5 metres.

SPOTMAPS are mosaics made from SPOT 5 satellite images acquired at 2.5 metres. Coverages are seamless and uniform over the territory of a country or even several countries. SPOTMAPS is the best georeferenced basemap used by our clients in mapping, defence, agriculture and forestry markets. Thanks to SPOTMAPS you can easily produce or update zoning plans and map, perform logistics planning or environment impact studies.

New mosaics are available regularly, with our production of 20 million square km more or less per year. We are at the moment covering more than 100 countries, representing more than 80 million square km available off-the-shelf, ready to be received by our clients a few hours after ordering.

Have a look at our SPOTMAPS Saudi Arabia poster available on www.spotimage.com/saudiarabia

. A high resolution version of this image is available from cheryl.billson@commacomms.com

Taking full advantage of the fully-integrated combined resources and skills of its Spot Image and Infoterra subsidiaries, the GEO-Information division of Astrium Services has become a recognized world leader in the geo-information market by offering decision-makers sustainable one-stop-shop solutions to increase security, protect the environment, and better manage natural resources. It has exclusive access to SPOT and TerraSAR-X satellite data, while also calling on a full gamut of space data sources and airborne acquisition capabilities, enabling it to offer an unrivalled combination of Earth observation products and services. Its portfolio spans the entire geo-information value chain.

By building on the synergy of Astrium Services’ extended skills and know-how, the GEO-Information division can also develop innovative solutions combining Earth observation, navigation and communications applications at competitive prices.

Contacts:
Cheryl Billson (Astrium Services GEO-Information division) Tel: +44 (0) 7791 720460
Jennifer Newlands (Astrium Services GEO-Information division) Tel: +33 (0) 5 62 19 40 09

www.astrium-geo.com

For more information about SPOTMAPS:www.spotimage.com/spotmaps

Order SPOTMAPS online at: http://spotmaps.spotimage.com

Grace Ltd successfully completes a survey dedicated to the Earth Observation market on the Southeastern Europe – the Balkans area.

The company undertook the first global survey of this kind on that region, focusing on the market of Earth Observation and the use of satellite imagery products and services for diverse projects in various sectors and countries. On this little-known European region which comprises a set of countries with huge diversity as of the size, population, European Union membership and development status, Grace dedicates a part of its operations, in order to achieve substantial capacity building.

Market data concerning the 2005-2010 period have been collected and information, indications and projections as well towards 2015 have been investigated and presented.

With this report, the firm consolidates its position as a valuable player on a promising and emerging market, as well as its solid knowledge of the regional tissue on the Southeastern Europe.

About GRACE

GRACE Ltd is a young and independent technology and consulting services firm. Based in Athens, its mission is to promote and guide space industry development and direct the benefits of Space to the society and the environment in the Eastern Mediterranean region.

The company is a dynamic partner contributing to local capacity building and progress in the Space industry and its applications.

www.graceapplications.com

We are pleased to announce the appointment of Adrian Bohane as CEO of TRE Canada.

He will be responsible for the ongoing growth and business of TRE Canada, working from the company’s offices in Vancouver, Canada. He is succeeding Brian Young who has now retired from the business.

With a background in geophysics and having previously worked at Egeos and MDA Geospatial Services, Adrian brings extensive experience in the Earth Observation field to TRE Canada. During the past 20 years, working in the business side of the earth observation and satellite sectors, his focus has been on both the value adding and data distribution sides of the business.

TRE Canada Inc is the wholly-owned subsidiary of Tele-Rilevamento Europa TRE srl, of Milano Italy, a global leader in advanced InSAR technologies. The company provides a remote sensing service in monitoring ground movement over large areas, remotely, to North American clients operating in the public and private sectors.

Adrian can be contacted at adrian.bohane_at_trecanada.com
or by phone at +1 604 331 2512.

Source

… US and Turkish distributors, German mosaic, Collaboration with EFTAS, Images in France, …

East View Cartographic Complements RapidEye’s U.S. Distributor Team (Januar 14,2011)

more info

NiK Joins RapidEye’s Turkish Distributor Team (January 5, 2011)

more info

VIASAT GeoTechnologies Added to RapidEye’s Canadian Distributor Team (English) (December 22, 2010)

more info

RapidEye German Mosaic Now Available (English) (December 21, 2010)

more info

EFTAS and RapidEye Extend their Collaboration in Supplying Satellite Imagery (English) (November 2, 2010)

more info

RapidEye Images The Complete Territory Of France For Cemagref Through Its Partnership With Geosys (English) (October 19, 2010)

more info

…floodings in Australia…

Cubbie Station, located along the Culgoa river in Australia, is a large privately owned and licensed irrigation property. It consists of over 28km long water storage dams. From Cubbie station crops such as cotton and wheat are irrigated in the region of the Murray Darling river system. This image shows the station at the height of the current flooding. The Cubbie Station website shows a model of flood progress over the site.This photo was taken on January 13, 2011 in Queensland, AU.


UK-DMC2 Image © DMCii, 2011. All rights reserved. Flooding at Cubbie Station, Queensland, Australia

Extracted from DMCii Flickr photostream

News from November and December


December

PCI Geomatics Awarded Contract for its GeoImaging Accelerator Aerial (GXL-A) Technology

PCI Geomatics, a world leading developer of geo-imaging software and systems, has announced it has been awarded a contract to deliver a GeoImaging Accelerator (GXL) Aerial processing system to an undisclosed aerial surveying firm. The GXL Aerial system will allow the customer to orthorectify and mosaic thousands of UltraCam images per day through the power of distributed processing that leverages Graphics Processing Units (GPUs). The adoption of this technology will result in significantly increased throughput and reduced production costs for this customer.
GXL Aerial was developed in cooperation with Microsoft’s Photogrammetry Division, Vexcel Imaging GmbH, to extend the UltraMap workflow and create ortho-mosaic data from level 3 UltraCam data.

more

November

PCI Geomatics Awarded Contract for its GeoImaging Accelerator (GXL) Technology in Asia

PCI Geomatics, a world leading developer of geo-imaging software and systems, has announced it was awarded a contract to deliver a GeoImaging Accelerator (GXL) Satellite processing system to a key customer in the Asia Pacific region. The $700,000 (USD) contract represents a major win for PCI Geomatics as it continues to bolster and solidify its presence in Asia and on the world stage.

more

PCI Geomatics Appoints Dr. Alan Moses to the Board of Directors

PCI Geomatics, a world leading developer of geoimaging software and systems, has announced the appointment of Dr. Alan Moses, the son of Dr. Robert (Bob) Moses to the PCI Board of Directors.

more

PCI GEOMATICS APPOINTS PRESIDENT AND CEO – Terry Moloney

PCI Geomatics, a world leading developer of geo-imaging software and systems, has announced the appointment of Terry Moloney as its new President and CEO succeeding Dr. Robert Moses.

more