NEWSBRIEFS – REMOTE SENSING

Feb 2008 | Comments Off

INDUSTRY | LBS | GPS | GIS | REMOTE SENSING | GALILEO UPDATE

Indo-Norwegian pact on developing TOPAZ

WAn Indo-Norwegian agreement was signed to collaborate in developing an operational ocean modelling and data assimilation system for the Indian Ocean—the TOPAZ Indian Ocean forecasting system. The parties from Norway are the Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Centre (NERSC) and the University of Bergen (UoB), while the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) and Nansen Environmental Research Centre-India (NERCI) Kochi are from India. According to a press release issued here, the TOPAZ Indian Ocean system has been implemented, assessed and used by a group of scientists of Bergen and Kochi. www.hindu.com

Israeli satelite placed in orbit

India has launched an Israeli satellite ‘Polaris’ from the spaceport at Sriharikota by a homegrown Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) and successfully placed it in the intended orbit, ISRO said. The PSLV-C10 lifted off from the First Launch Pad (FLP) at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at 0915 hours with the ignition of the first stage.

Japanese mapping satellite flops

The “Daichi” satellite by Japan went up about two years ago to collect data to create maps of remote parts of the country. But according to Geographical Survey Institute, the images received are blurry and could not be used for the detailed mapping planned. But the images won’t go to waste as it will be used as background data for land use determination and the like. http://afp.google.com

Sikkim has the largest number of glaciers in India

Sikkim, comprising 0.5 per cent of India’s landmass, has 84 glaciers, the largest number as compared to any other state or union territory. The present number of glaciers at 84, with the mapping exercise still underway to find about out more ice caps in the state has grown by about four times over the past six years as the figure of glaciers stood at 21 at that time, according to a senior scientist of the science and technology department, which has been carrying out mapping of the glaciers and other landscapes of the state. The glaciers have been mapped by using remote sensing application system and capturing data through satellite, he said. www.hindu.com/

Geoeye launch delayed

The GeoEye-1 satellite is unlikely to be launched before 22 August at the earliest. GeoEye Inc in the US informed the Securities and Exchange Commission of the latest delay on 12 January. Under a contract with Boeing Launch Services and United Launch Alliance, the satellite was scheduled for launch in April from the Vandenberg Air Force Base. The delay has been caused by unspecified problem on a military satellite. Both satellites are to be launched on Detla-2 rockets, but the military craft will not be ready until June.

Remote sensing applications for agriculture get European parliament approval

The European Parliament adopted a non-binding report on remote sensing applications developed within the CAP with 594 votes in favour, 23 against and 54 abstentions. The EU’s agricultural policy takes account of the social structure of agricultural and the natural disparities between the various agricultural regions of the EU. Hence there is a need for information on land condition and crop use. Remote sensing applications help provide some of this information. Between 2003 and 2007 a pilot project on remote-sensing techniques was initiated. www.newsdesk.se/

ISRO offers free access to RS data in SARC

Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and other SAARC nations will have access to free-of-cost remote sensing data collected by various satellites launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) during major disasters in the region, according to an official of home ministry. The official said since the satellite imaging of the region also involves the security concerns of the neighbouring countries, it would be discussed with each nation concerned. The idea was discussed in a workshop recently, to use geo-informatics in riskmapping, risk assessment and risk monitoring under diverse geographical, socio-economic and cultural settings. Indian Sexperts specifically mentioned how remote sensing images taken even by commercial satellites clearly captured the tsunami along the eastern coast (2004), Kashmir earthquake (2005) and Bangladesh cyclone ‘Sidr’ (2007). http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/

CARTOSAT-1 satellite data agreement

Euromap GmbH (Germany) and ANTRIX Corporation (India) have agreed to expand Euromap’s participation in the Indian Remote Sensing satellite program with the reception and distribution of high-resolution stereo imagery from the Cartosat-1 (IRS-P5) satellite. Under the terms of the new three year agreement, Euromap will have the exclusive distribution rights in Europe to receive and distribute Cartosat-1 data collected over Europe and North Africa. Euromap represents the only receiving and distribution facilities for IRS satellite data in Europe.

ISRO plans satellite series for civilian applications

India plans to create a chain of nine earth observation satellites which will be used for civilian applications such as identifying potential fishing zones or mapping streets in cities. They will be placed in the socalled low earth orbit or around 700km above the earth’s surface by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The agency will launch the satellites, also known as remote sensing satellites, over the next five years beginning June with Oceansat-2, a satellite that has devices that can track wind velocity on the surface of the sea and which can be used to identify fishing zones.