EO Applications for Environment and Security

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" rowspan="2" width=210 BGCOLOR="#99CC99" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="1948dfc3.jpg"> <div> <B><IMG SRC="231c4900.gif" border=0 width="196" height="144" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> ERS Data processed by ESA</div> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="EnvironmentEcologyForestry"><U><B>Return Home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id8.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Trust and Mission"><U><B>Trust and Mission</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id33.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Resource Persons"><U><B>Resource Persons</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id26.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Curriculum Vitae of Claude R. Heimo"><U><I><B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700c811111100.gif" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">CV Claude R. 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Pressure on natural resources is intense and growing in both developing and developed economies. There are all over the world serious problems in the areas of urban and industrial pollution, atmospheric emissions, soil erosion and land degradation, degradation of water resources, deforestation; and loss of biodiversity and natural habitats. Furthermore, the increasing recurrence of natural disasters such as tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes and weather pattern changes (due to global warming effects), which can bring sudden droughts and flooding not only take their tolls in lives, but also cost the global economy billions of euros or dollars and not knowing the causes often means societies cannot be prepared in advance to reduce the impacts. As a result, questions about the sustainability of current economic growth are more than an abstraction concerning limits of growth. The real economic costs of environmental degradation to the society are mounting rapidly, taking the forms of increasing health costs and mortality, reduced outputs in resources-based sectors, and irreversible loss of biodiversity and overall environmental quality.</div> <bR> <div> These are strong statements about the state of the environment, which are supported by most of the world's governments, international institutions and the common perception of the public at large. However, in spite of impressive recent development in airborne and satellite industry, there are still incomplete data to support these statements since the most reliable data on existing levels of degradation are on specific locations and are not geographically comprehensive. For instance, comprehensive data on total industrial emissions do not address ambient conditions, but help to illustrate worrisome trends that will continue to worsen without targeted efforts to change the direction of the trend. This is not surprising, since many environmental problems have only become recognised within the past decade.</div> <bR> <div> In this context, airborne and spaceborne information are and will be representing a fundamental source of information for the assessment and monitoring of the environment of our planet. In fact, for almost thirty years, remote sensing has proved to be a powerful technology for monitoring the earth's environment at a global and regional scale, but, so far, remote sensing data have only been used extensively at a local level by a few traditional market segments (e.g. governments for the assessment and monitoring of agricultural and forestry production; resource extraction industries; mapping industries, etc.) as the first generation of satellite data often lacked the desired spatial resolution and timely access desired by the potential customer base.</div> <bR> <div> This situation is now rapidly evolving with the launching of a new generation of satellites. In many cases satellites are the only way to obtain reliable, objective and timely data to help understand the process of climate change, because they have a truly global view and can provide data from very remote areas. Therefore, earth observation from space has a key role to play as mankind charts a course into the new millennium.<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" > </FONT></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Typical Applications for Sustainable Development, Environment and Security</B></I></div> <bR> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <IMG SRC="22b82f20.gif" border=0 width="642" height="498" ALT="Image Bitmap" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Potential End-Users of EO Applications</B></I></div> <bR> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <IMG SRC="22db5ff0.gif" border=0 width="693" height="511" ALT="Image Bitmap" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </td> </tr></table></body>