Pilot Project for Public Use in Thailand
The objective of this project is to enhance capabilities of thai participating agencies in Japanese satellite data application and the promote the practical use to generate information of major crop forecasting, land cover, city planning, digital elevation model and coastal resource management in Thailand (Figure 5). Participating agencies and project themes are shown in table. The role of NASDA is to provide Japanese satellite data (MOS-1, JERS-1, ADEOS) and to provide equipment and software including maintenance. The role of NRCT is to coordinate participating agencies and to provide technical assistance and consultation. The role of AIT, which is contracted by NASDA, is to provide technical training on data analysis, image processing and evaluation. The role of 4 participating agencies is to analyze data including ground truthing, to conduct development of map as described in project themes in table and to establish map generation system as tool to extract administrative information for each agency (Figure 6). This project started on November 1997 and will continue unitl October 2002 through the interim evaluation on 2000. NRCT and NASDA concluded the cooperative agreement on the end of October 1997 to ensure the operation of this project (Figure5)
Figure 5. Objective & Period
| Participating Agency | Project Theme | On-going Study Area |
| LDD(Land Development Department) | Regional Land coverMaps of Thaliand | Central and Eastern part of Thailand |
| DTCP(Department of Town and Country Planning) | Urban land-use Maps and Digital Elevation Model | Rayong, Chanthaburi |
| DOF(Department of Fishery) | Maps of coastal prawn frams and adjacent land uses | Chanthabur, Nakhonsri-thammarat, Suratthani, Naratiwas province |
| OAE(Office of Agricultural Economics) | Production forecast of economic corps such as rice | Lopburi province |
Table 1. Project Theme & On going Study Area
Figure 6. Role of Each Organization
On-going Activities and Results of Pilot Project in Thailand
Thai participating agencies have been improving their capabilities with provision of new equipments, specific training programs and daily technical assistances. The first intensive training course for this project was held on January 19-28,1998 in ATM (mainly basic analysis) and Chanthaburi province (field survey to verify the analysis result). About 10 trainees from participating agencies attended this course. The seminar including topics of this project was held on February 13, 1998 in NRCT. The second intensive training course was held on Octomber 12-16, 1998 in NRCT (mainly advanced analysis using Thai language).
Regretably ADEOS malfunctioned June 30, 1997, but we already got approximately 200 good scenes of ADEOS data in Thailand which covers about 25% of whole Thailand and now we are providing these data to agencies. On-going study area of each agency is indicated in table Each agency has already made some results. Department of Fishery (DOF) has got the prospect of evaluation of potential prawn production in some coastal area by analyzing JERS-1/OPS image data. DOF is now challenging to develop the analysis method and improve the accuracy of evaluation. Land Development Department (LDD) has got some provincial land cover map of some part of study area using JERS-1/OPS. LDD is now trying to make the regional land cover map using JERS-1/OPS and ADEOS/AVNIR. Department of Town and country Planning (DTCP) has got some topographic map on Digital Elevation Model (DEM) using JERS-1/OPS in their study area. DTCP is now trying to make urban land-use map using JERS-1/OPS and ADEOS/AVNIR. Office of Agricultural Ecoomics (OAE) has got the land cover map of Lopburi province using JERS-1/OPS, in order to assess the economic crops area mapping. OAE is now trying to monitor the growth of economic crops using JERS-1/SAR.
Project Planning in Future
The seminar including on-going results of this project will be held on February 1999 in NRCT. We believe that this project shall bring a major step of Japanese data utilization of government user community in Thailand in the near future. Now Bangkok office is making efforts to support this project, because I think Japanese satellite data should be utilized more efficiently and widely in Thailand than until now.
Meanwhile NASDA is planning to begin the second Pilot Project for Public Use with Indonesian government from this Japanese fiscal year (by March 1999) and now is negotiating with Indonesian government about the preparation of the project program. Successful start is strongly expected.
