Remote Sensingand

Earth Observation

November 2008

Gennaro Cappelluti

Earth Observation

satellites, aircraft, atmospheric radiosondes, samplers, balloons, weather stations, ships, buoys, floats, ocean profilers.

weather, climate, oceans, land, geology, natural resources, ecosystems, natural and human-induced hazards.

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main societal benefits derived bya coordinated global observation system

• reducing loss of life and property from natural and human-induced disasters;• understanding environmental factors affecting human health and well being;• improving management of energy resources;• understanding, assessing, predicting, mitigating climate variability and change;• improving water resource management by better understanding of water cycle;• improving weather information, forecasting, warning;• improving the management of terrestrial, coastal, marine ecosystems;• supporting sustainable agriculture and combating desertification;• understanding, monitoring, conserving biodiversity.

evolution and impact of El Niño, solar fluctuations, weather, extreme events (floods and droughts), coastal pollution, ocean surface temperatures and biological activity,

algal blooms, vegetation cycles, deforestation, forest fires, urban development, greenhouse gases, aerosols, volcanic activity, tectonic plate motion.

observation systems monitor

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satellites• agriculture and forestry: mapping information, crop health statistics, yield

predictions, harvest optimisation, estimated rainfall amount;• resource mapping: locate both renewable and non-renewable resources;• hazard monitoring and disaster assessment: volcano plumes, areas stricken

by drought or earthquake;• commercial fishing industries: fishing assessments;• shipping: ocean wave and current information to improve operational safety and

route-planning;• mapping and urban planning agencies: maps and digital elevation models.

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disastersA wide variation in the number and intensity of natural disasters (floods, typhoons, tsunamis, hurricanes and cyclones, earthquakes, tornadoes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, subsidence, drought, wildfires) is normal and to be expected, but the events of the last few decades suggest that there may be an upward trend caused by human activities. Many scientists believe that the recent increase of weather-related natural disasters is the product of increased global warming.

• disaster knowledge and prevention: risk maps, hazard characteristics, probability of occurrence;

• disaster forecasting: prediction and warning;• emergency response, recovery and

reconstruction: assessment of the extent and severity of the damage, delivering food, health care.

natural disasters cannot be prevented, but their social and economic impacts can be reduced by

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cholera in India and Bangladesh

respiratory illnesses

Links have been established between outbreaks of cholera in India and Bangladesh and oceanic conditions in the Bay of Bengal, including concentrations of

phytoplankton and chlorophyll, sea surface temperature and height. Data from AVHRR, SeaWiFS and Topex-Poseidon support these assessments.

Respiratory illnesses are rising across the world, especially in urban centres, originating from industry and traffic. Space-based instruments trace plumes of

chemicals as they move through the air and provide maps of their concentrations.

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energy Geological, tectonic and seismic data play an important role in searching

for new oil and gas reserves, sought in increasingly remote and hostile areas of the planet. Over 75% of the world’s oil-bearing basins contain

surface seeps and SAR satellite imagery is routinely used to seek for these.

Renewable energy sources (solar, wind, wave power) offer environmentally-friendly alternatives to fossil fuels but are particularly

sensitive to environmental conditions. Local climate data (cloud cover, solar irradiance, wind/wave speed and direction) are vital elements for the

location and operation of solar, wind and wave power facilities.

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global warming

Global warming trend is believed caused by greenhouse gases. The most important are: carbon dioxide (CO2), which comes mainly from the burning of fossil

fuels, methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), ozone (O3), chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). An improved understanding of the global carbon cycle is a policy

imperative, both globally and for individual countries. The investigation can be carried out by analysing concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere,

vegetation cover, seasonal growth, fire detection, ocean phytoplankton.

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weatherMany aspects of our lives are governed by the weather, including public health, agriculture, energy, construction, transportation, tourism, recreation, ecosystems, biodiversity. Of particular consequence are severe weather events, such as hurricanes, tornadoes, flash floods, blizzards, heat waves, droughts.

Modern weather forecasting techniques use sophisticated computer models of the atmosphere, which solve equations that describe the evolution of variables such as temperature, wind speed, humidity, pressure. The process begins by analysing the current state of the atmosphere, described by data from satellites, aircraft, atmospheric radiosondes, samplers, balloons, weather stations, ships, buoys, etc.

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