Expanding the Use of Remote Sensing Capabilities to Improve the Global Quality of Life
- Paper number
IAC-07-E3.3.08
- Author
Dr. Thomas Snitch, Little Falls Associates, Inc., United States
- Year
2007
- Abstract
Dr. Nicholas Short, formerly of Goddard Space Flight Center, wrote in the introduction to the Remote Sensing Tutorial:
Remote sensing is the technology that is now the principal modus operandi by which the Earth’s surface and atmosphere, the planets, and indeed the entire Universe are observed, measured, and intergrated from such vantage points as the terrestrial surface, earth-orbit, and outer space.
Remote sensing and imaging techology has proven to be an important resource and tool for the developing world. Moreover, given the constant technological improvements of imagery satellites, greater attention should be devoted to the unrestricted use of this important global asset.
However, some nations have enacted policies which restrain the flow of data and information coming from these satellites. These nations have implemented restrictive policies to channel the flow of data through government agencies while bypassing or placing severe controls on the dissemination of imagery through commercial outlets. These policies have had, in general, a negative effect on efforts to improve the quality of life around the world.
This paper will focus on the remote sensing policies of a number of nations and will provide a critical review of these policy approaches. The paper will also cite specific examples, from six topic areas, where a freer and less restrictive flow of remote sensing data and satellite imagery could benefit the global quality of life.
The topic areas to be examinded include:
1. Land use and general mapping including urban development and transportation issues;
2. Agricultural issues of crop selection, timber resources, biomass concerns, soil, grass, and fire control;
3. Geological formations and impacts on mineral utilization;
4. Water resources to include flood plain concerns, turbidity, irrigation patterns, sediment flows, and urban waste water issues;
5. Oceanographis resource use to include sea circulation, shoreline changes, eddies and wave affecting the coast, and fishery management;
6. Environmental concerns of air and water pollution, aftermaths of natural disasters, population shifts, defoliation, and eutrophication of freshwater sources.
None of these challenging issues will cure themselves.
Therefore, it is both prudent and necessary to take a comprehensive look at remote sensing policies, around the world, and to critically examine how these resources can best serve the interests of all nations in the future.
- Abstract document