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21st
January 2008 VOL 4 Issue 3 |
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Top Stories |
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As part of an effort to increase its ability to map the country through satellite imaging, 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 low earth orbits or around 700km above the earth’s surface by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The agency will launch the 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.
The launch of these civilian satellites will be preceded by the launch, in February, of Cartosat-2A, a satellite that will be used for defence purposes with sub-meter resolution. ISRO is building also building Cartosat-3, with a resolution of about 0.35m.
India and France are jointly working on two satellites, Saral and Megha Tropiques, to track climate changes in the ocean and the tropics. ISROis building a family of radar imaging satellites that carry synthetic aperture radars, all-weather imaging sensors that are capable of taking images in cloudy and snow-covered regions.
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A group of atmospheric research scientists at NASA's National Space Science and Technology Center and University of Alabama at Birmingham's School of Public Health representatives are collaborating in a novel project which will lead to 'forecasting public health' using data from remote sensing satellites. Both UAB and NASA want to understand, using NASA satellite data on air quality, heat indexes, temperature, humidity, and other environmental elements, how the environment is influencing the diseases and conducive conditions. This study's findings will help health officials with environmental exposure and health recommendations."
This idea led UAB to create a remote sensing lab - in fact the first U.S. dedicated remote sensing lab for medical and public health.
Studies sponsored by the lab have already led to critical research in fighting malaria. Infrared imagery from satellites is helping scientists locate warm standing water - fertile breeding ground for mosquitoes.Other researchers at the lab are using satellite imagery to correlate cases of West Nile virus with nearness to tire dumps -- another favorite breeding ground for the virus-carrying mosquito. Remote sensing has even proven valuable in tracking environmental influences on childhood asthma. Satellite data are revealing pollution levels and other environmental factors where the children live to find out whether these factors might be triggering asthma attacks.
Products and Releases
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Geocortex Essentials 1.2 for ArcGIS Server
TerraSAR-X Services now Available
Power to Digitize from Adapx
Pitney Bowes MapInfo Enhances AnySite
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Image of the Week |
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The Real Lost World
For additional information Click here
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PIT STOP |
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Pema Dorji from Bhutan Telecom needs help...
Bhutan Telecom is trying to develop GIS system for telecommunication network utilities. To do this they have bought GIS software ArcView 3.3 version and GPS system as well. They have been practicing data collection of network utilities starting from buried cable network since last two years. They are unable to do network analysis like land of sight studies, signal coverage, station to station land of sight feasibilities study. This is all because they have limited software, no GIS expert or consultant. They therefore, seek help from the geospatial community, for suggestions about the basic requirement for GIS development in Telecommunications in Bhutan.
Please send your replies to ppdorji@telecom.net.bt
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Audiocast |
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News Cast
By Hrishikesh
Samant
This News Cast is 19.50 minutes long and contains news
and discussions on the happenings in the geospatial domain.
Video Cast
Jack Dangermond - On the occassion of the Mountain GIS e-conference organised by ICIMOD. (15.30 min)
http://menris.icimod.net/download/index.htm
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| Editorial |
Legacy issues and the poor whipping boy...
Two organisations OS and SOI - established by the same masters (almost) , almost simultaneously ( 1746 and 1767), with identical aims and guidelines, with army officers at the helm...but in 1974 the position of the Director General – Ordnance Survey (OS) became a civilian post and in 1999 the OS became a government trading fund . The Survey of India (SOI) maintained the legacy of an army man at the helm till 2002. The SOI still continues as a government department albeit now under the Department of Science and Technology.
The OS follows the 'charge for data' model and delivers data updated till the last 24hours. The data is licensed to users and OS is a profit making organisation.
The SOI was completely involved in cadastral surveys till 1904 when a governmental committee recommended that cadastral surveys be delegated (or abdicated , or relegated) to the individual States. As a result, today not a single Indian State probably has a seamless cadaster map.
Nick Brown the Chief Executive of Green Amps in the UK is liable to serve in prison for using OS data for what he feels is his right to use government data for public good and more so as no other viable alternative exists to OS data. He has placed his data in escrow, pending his appeal in court.
In India, homicides due to property disputes are more than the deaths due to terrorist attacks and and identical scenario will exist in any country where its National Mapping Agency is not empowered to carry out cadastral mapping.
We can blame all these crimes, inconveniences, slow paced progress, environmental degradations, terrorism, energy crisis, border disputes, stock market crash, recession, .... on the free for all whipping boy* named 'geospatial data' , free or paid for ...does it matter?
 Dr.
Hrishikesh Samant
hrishikesh@gisdevelopment.net
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INTERGEO EAST
18 February - 20 February 2008, Belgrade Fair, Belgrade, Serbia
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To see the previous issues
of ‘GIS Development Weekly’: Click here |
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