NEWSBRIEFS – REMOTE SENSING		
		     May 2009 | Comments Off on NEWSBRIEFS – REMOTE SENSING
	  			
  
    
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|  | RISAT – ISRO’s SAR satellite, launchedISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle                                        (PSLV-C12), on April 20, 2009                                        successfully placed two satellites –                                        RISAT-2 and ANUSAT – in the desired                                        orbit. RISAT-2 is a Radar Imaging                                        Satellite with the capability to take                                        images of the earth during day and                                        night as well as cloudy conditions. This                                        satellite will enhance ISRO’s capability                                        for earth observation, especially during                                        disaster management. ANUSAT, built                                        by Anna University, Chennai is the first                                        experimental communication satellite                                        built by an Indian University under the                                        guidance of ISRO and will demonstrate                                        the technologies related to message store                                        and forward operations. www.isro.org |  |  
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| New web service to resolve land                                        disputesBluesky has launched a new web service  designed to help resolve boundary, rights  of way, and other land related disputes.  Visitors to www.oldaerialphotos.com can  now identify and acquire photographic  evidence from the past to support their  claim. In addition to millions of aerial  images dating back as far as the 1917, a range of professional services are also  available including Letters of Authenticity,  Statutory Declaration and even appearance  in court by a professional photographic  interpreter. www.bluesky-world.com |  |  |  
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|  | Satellites show moving earth during                                        Italy quakeStudying satellite radar data from ESA’s  Envisat and the Italian Space Agency’s  COSMO-SkyMed, scientists have  begun analysing the movement of Earth  during and after the recent earthquake  in L’Aquila, central Italy. The scientists  are using the SAR Interferometry  (InSAR) technique, a sophisticated  version of ‘spot the difference’. It involves combining two or more  radar images of the same ground  location in such a way that very precise  measurements – down to a scale of a few millimetres – can be made of any  ground motion taking place between  image acquisitions. www.esa.int |  |  
|  | Canadian air force to map  AfghanistanThe Canadian air force is to digitally  map southern Afghanistan and especially  the province of Kandahar for NATO  and Afghan pilots and ground troops.  An Aurora reconnaissance aircraft with  sensors and cameras will be dispatched to  undertake this major mapmaking project  Canwest News Service, www.canada.com |  |  
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|  | Snow maps to help reindeer herdersInternational Centre for Reindeer  Husbandry (ICR) has partnered with  ESA-backed Polar View initiative to  obtain satellite based snow melt maps  for Norway and Sweden and Eurasia. It  will help the Arctic reindeer herders who  are facing the challenges of adapting to climate change. www.esa.int |  |  
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