Chinese Space Agency Joins The International Charter Space And Major Disasters

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

CNSA Administrator Sun Laiyan (right) signing the Charter on 24 May 2007 at ESA headquarters in Paris, France, in the presence of ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain. Credits: ESAChina Launches New Remote Sensing Satellite
Jiuquan, China (Xinhua) May 28 - China launched a new remote sensing satellite "Yaogan II" from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China at 15:12 Beijing Time on Friday. The satellite, launched by a "Long March 2D" carrier rocket, will be used for scientific research, land resources surveying, crop yield estimate and disaster forecast, according to the China Academy of Space Technology, the main developer of the satellite. A tiny satellite weighing around one kilogram which was developed by Zhejiang University, was also carried on the Long March 2D. The so-called pico satellite will be used for research into micro-electronics. The launch was the 99th of China's Long March series of rockets. The "Yaogan I" satellite was launched from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in north China's Shanxi Province on April 27, 2006.

by Staff Writers
Paris (ESA) May 28, 2007
The China National Space Administration has become the newest member of the International Charter 'Space and Major Disasters', a joint initiative that works to provide emergency response satellite data free of charge to those affected by disasters anywhere in the world.

China National Space Administration (CNSA) Administrator Prof. Dr Sun Laiyan signed the Charter on 24 May at ESA headquarters in Paris, France, in the presence of ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain, CNES Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Yannick d'Escatha and the Chinese Ambassador to France Zhao Jinjun.

"The International Charter 'Space and Major Disasters' has proven to be very useful to support organisations in charge of managing consequences for the population facing natural disasters," Dordain said. " We are delighted to welcome the newcomer CNSA of China to the Charter, bringing new and performant capabilites for providing data in case of natural disasters."

Each member of the International Charter 'Space and Major Disasters' has demonstrated its commitment to using space assets when it is most needed, such as when disasters of natural and human origin strike the world's communities or wreak havoc on the environment. To date, the Charter has been activated more than 125 times.

With CNSA's addition, disaster management authorities will now not only have access to Chinese satellite data archives but also to data from new CNSA missions.

Last month, two American commercial satellite imagery firms - DigitalGlobe and GeoEye - joined forces with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), a Charter member, representing a unique collaboration between governments and industry in the area of commercial space imaging that benefits people worldwide.

GeoEye and DigitalGlobe own and operate Earth-imaging satellites that acquire very high-resolution images. DigitalGlobe's QUICKBIRD and GeoEye's IKONOS satellites, for example, capture panchromatic images with a resolution of one metre or less.

While there is normally a cost associated with obtaining high-resolution commercial satellite scenes, the two companies will donate some archived imagery and provide newly tasked imagery to USGS and the Charter.

Most recently, the Charter was invoked on 8 May 2007 after the worst flooding to hit Uruguay for half a century caused the evacuation of 12 000 people in the provinces of Durazno, Treinta y Tres and Mercedes. Charter members provided satellite images, providing key information on the stricken areas.

The European and French space agencies (ESA and CNES) initiated the International Charter 'Space and Major Disasters' following the UNISPACE III conference held in Vienna, Austria in July 1999. The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) joined the Charter on 20 October 2000.

Other members currently include the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Argentine Space Agency (CONAE), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the British National Space Centre/Disaster Monitoring Constellation (BNSC/DMC) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

Email This Article

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

LSU And Los Alamos Team Up To Improve Evacuation Plans

Baton Rouge LA (SPX) May 24, 2007
Brian Wolshon, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at LSU and member of the LSU Hurricane Center, has been getting international recognition for his research and application of emergency evacuations and traffic modeling. But he isn't stopping there.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT Chinese Space Agency Joins The International Charter Space And Major Disasters LSU And Los Alamos Team Up To Improve Evacuation Plans It Takes People Power To Overcome Disasters International Cooperation Boosts EarthCARE	CLIMATE SCIENCE Yangtze Flood Alert As Tibetan Glaciers Melt US Clash With G8 Partners Looms Over Climate Issues ExxonMobil Shareholders To Raise Heat On Global Warming US Carbon-Dioxide Emissions Fell 1.3 Percent In 2006
EARTH OBSERVATION Tracking A Hot Spot In The Center Of The Biggest Ocean On Earth MetOp-A Takes Up Service General Dynamics Awarded Contract For NASA's Landsat Data Continuity Mission Study ESA Presents The Sharpest Ever Satellite Map Of Earth	ENERGY TECH Japan Proposes Halving Emissions By 2050 New Fabrication Technique Yields Nanoscale UV LEDs California Eco-Homes Offer Glimpse Of Lunar Future Indian Businessman Capitalizes On Global Warming Concerns
EPIDEMICS System To Pinpoint Airline Passengers Who Contaminate Cabins AIDS Remains Global Worry Scientists Concerned About Effects Of Global Warming On Infectious Diseases Lab Confirms Deadly Fish Virus Spreading To New Species	FLORA AND FAUNA Ants Show Us How To Make Super-Highways Professor Helps Develop Techniques To Reduce Threat Against Honeybees New Wrinkle In Evolution With Man-Made Proteins Miracle Of Evolution Fights For Survival In Death Valley
FROTH AND BUBBLE Serious Health Risk In Naples Area As Garbage System Backs Up Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova Choking On Toxic Waste Pollution And Chemicals Blamed For Massive Cancer Rate Risa Across China Beijing To Turn Garbage Into Power	ABOUT US Northrop Grumman Dedicates Habitat For Humanity House Exercise Reverses Aging In Human Skeletal Muscle Sweden Mulls Freeze-Drying As New Burial Method Brain Size And Gender Surprises In Latest Fossil Tying Humans Apes And Monkeys

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2006 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA PortalReports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additionalcopyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement