IMAGING

China sends up remote sensing satellite

China has launched a high-resolution optical Earth observation satellite recently. The Gaofen 8 satellite lifted off from the Taiyuan space center in northern China’s Shanxi province. Chinese officials said the Gaofen 8 satellite is part of a civilian program, joining the Gaofen 1 and Gaofen 2 Earth observation satellites launched from the Taiyuan space center in 2013 and 2014. Imagery from Gaofen 8 will aid in general land surveys, land ownership evaluations, urban planning, road network planning, crop yield measurements, and responding to natural disasters. http://spacefiightnow.com

New Belarusian-Russian remote sensing satellite within 2-3 years

A new Belarusian-Russian satellite for the remote sensing of the Earth will be created within 2-3 years. The statement was made by Chairman of the Presidium of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus (NASB) Vladimir Gusakov. He said that the satellite will be created through joint efforts of the two countries. http://www.atom.belta.by

New RS Facility launched in Bengaluru, India

Karnataka Chief Minister recently inaugurated the new Karnataka State Remote Sensing Applications Centre (KSRSAC) facility at Doddabettahalli. He also launched the GIS portal K – GIS which will provide data and map services to various departments of Karnataka governments. The database has 54 GIS layers. www.newindianexpress.com

Bluesky signs aerial mapping contract with Ordnance Survey Ireland

Aerial mapping company Bluesky has signed up Ireland’s National Mapping Agency as an exclusive reseller for the public sector market. The agreement between Bluesky and Ordnance Survey (OS) Ireland covers the provision of the highest resolution, most up to date aerial photography for the Republic of Ireland, together with associated 3D height products. Under the terms of the agreement OS Ireland, with support from Bluesky, will exclusively licence Bluesky’s Ireland products to public sector organisations such as local councils, central government departments and executive agencies. www.bluesky-world.com

Belarus, India to develop joint RS program

Belarus and India intend to develop a joint program in the field of remote sensing of the Earth. “The National Academy of Sciences of Belarus is actively developing cooperation with partners from the Republic of India. Negotiations are underway with the Ministry of Science and Technology of India on the mechanism of initiating joint programs in the field of remote sensing of the Earth,” the NASB explained. http://eng.belta.by

Sentinel-2A to provide colour vision of Earth

Sentinel-2A is the first optical Earth observation satellite in the European Copernicus programme. On 23 June at 03.51:58 am CEST, a Vega launcher took off from the spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, carrying the satellite developed and built under the industrial leadership of Airbus Defence and Space for the European Space Agency (ESA). The 1.1 tonne satellite has been designed to operate for at least 7 years and 3 months in a polar orbit around 780 kilometres above the Earth.

The Sentinel 2 mission will contribute to the management of food security by providing information for the agricultural sector. It will also enable the condition of and changes in land surfaces to be mapped and forests worldwide to be monitored. Also the mission will provide information about the pollution of lakes and coastal waters. Images of  oods, volcanic eruptions and landslides will aid the production of disaster maps and facilitate humanitarian aid activities.