Russia recently launched a civil remote sensing satellite aboard a Soyuz rocket, lofting a spacecraft with a modernized high-resolution digital camera to collect imagery of Earth for Russian government. The images will be used by emergency personnel, environmental scientists, urban…

INDUSTRY | LBS | GNSS | GIS | IMAGING | GALILEO UPDATE

Russia to Launch South Korean Satellite in August
A Russian rocket will launch South Korea’s latest multipurpose Arirang-5 satellite on August 22, Seoul’s science ministry said. A backup launch date has also been set for August 23. The Arirang-5 is South Korea’s first satellite …

DMC International Imaging is helping The Algerian Space Agency to predict the spread of locust plagues across North Africa as part of a pro-active approach to tackle the destructive phenomenon using satellite imagery. Every year, North Africa is subjected to locust plagues that threaten to decimate crops and endanger countries’ food security. The satellite imagery is used to assess vegetation conditions, which helps to predict the locations of locust breeding grounds. The imagery is used in conjunction with weather data to help create locust forecasts and focus the application of pesticides to prevent the spread of swarms. www.dmcii.com

PCI Geomatics now supports SPOT-6 imagery within its software suite. SPOT- 6, a new satellite built and operated by Astrium was launched on September 9th, 2012 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in India. SPOT-6 is an optical imaging satellite capable of imaging the Earth with a resolution of 1.5 m Panchromatic and 6 m Multispectral (Blue, Green, Red, Near-IR). The support for SPOT-6 will be available in the Geomatica 2013 SP2 product release. www.pcigeomatics.com

A MoU was signed by the Valuation and Property Service Department (JPPH) and Malaysian Remote Sensing Agency (ARSM), JPPH director general Datuk Abd Hamid Abu Bakar said the collaboration was done based on the success of a pilot project in the federal territory in accelerating and improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the valuation process. He said the pilot project was successful and had an impact in accelerating and improving the efficiency and effectiveness in the proses of property evaluation. www.thesundaily.my

Pleiades 1B, captures its first images using e2v sensors
Pleiades 1B, the Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES) Earth observation satellite, has captured its ô€‚¿ rst images using e2v high performance imaging sensors. www.e2v.com/

A Chinese Long March rocket successfully launched a Turkish remote sensing satellite last month. The 450-kilogram satellite, built by Turkey’s Space Technologies Research Institute and Turkish Aerospace Industries, Inc., with a camera system provided by South Korea, is designed to provide imagery of the Earth at resolutions as high as 2.5 meters. http://www.spacetoday.net/

Designed for a wide range of survey applications, the SIRIUS UAV is a fixed wing structure ideal for corridor mapping roads, pipelines and power lines, calculating stockpile volumes, monitoring erosion, reconciliation and progress reporting.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) plans to launch 58 space missions, including sending spacecraft to moon and Mars, an exclusive satellite to keep a round-the-clock watch on the country and deploy 500 transponders in the next fi ve years. The space agency also aims to deploy its own version of the GPS by putting into orbit a constellation of seven satellites which would form the Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS).

China will promote the use of drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), to strengthen the nation’s marine surveillance, the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) said. The SOA verified and accepted a pilot program of using drones to undertake remote-sensing marine surveillance in Lianyungang, a costal city in eastern Jiangsu Province.