Earth Resources Technology Systems
SOVIET APPLICATION OF SPACE TO
THE ECONOMY
By Lani Hummel Raleigh*
1971-1975
V. EARTH RESOURCES SATELLITES
The Soviet Union has shown a definite interest in Earth resources satellites. However, it does not have an operational program at the present time. It remains unclear from Soviet accounts whether they propose to create unmanned systems for gathering Earth resources data on a regular operational basis, or whether such -work will be held in abeyance until an operational manned space station is formed.
At a scientific conference held in Zvenigorod, near Moscow, the problems of studying the Earth from space were discussed. Commenting on this conference, Academician Roald Sagdeyev, director of the Space Research Institute, the Soviet Academy of Sciences, stressed that the main task of the conference is to work out unified scientific principles and methods for exploring the Earth's resources from outer space and for organizing systematic control over the environment with the help of artificial satellites. Sagdeyev mentioned the international aspects of Earth resources study: man-made influences on the environment; reaching beyond national borders, and the assessment of natural resources from space for the developing nations. Although Sagdeyev called for international cooperation for a global Earth resources monitoring system, there was no mention of immediate plans for an operational system for the U.S.S.R. (59)
However, it was announced at the conference that initial steps had been taken to establish a research center, Kaspii, its purpose to develop new methods of using remote sensing to study the natural resources of the Caspian region. The conferees were also informed that plans were underway to build a central scientific institution to study the Earth's resources from space. (60)
A. EARTH RESOURCES DATA FROM THE METEOR SATELLITES
Geologists were among the first to use space photographs. They have long used aerial photography for research. However, the maximum area of the Earth's surface that can be photographed at any given time from an aircraft is 1,000-2,000 square kilometers. The dimensions of geological structures —folds, depressions, and faults in the Earth's crust —are measured in hundreds and thousands of kilometers. Such large geological formations can only be seen as a whole from space. (61)
Soviet geologists cite numerous geological discoveries resulting from the use of space photographs. Images of the Earth from space have enabled geologists to see faults which have not been discovered by ground expeditions. They have also been able to correlate such geological anomalies with mineral deposits and increased seismic activity. (62) Russian scientists also claim that satellite imagery led to the discovery of iron at Malyy Khingan and coal in the Amurskaya Oblast. (63)
Geologists in the Soviet Union are now revising existing geological maps. Many regions which earlier had been considered well explored geologically, such as the Urals and the Caucasus, have appeared entirely different after a space survey. (64) Thus, a space map of a territory comprising 6 million square kilometers has enabled the All-Union Aerogeological Trust to formulate new theories about the tectonic structure of the region. (65)
Using satellite images Soviet agronomists can monitor crop growth over large areas. It has also been discovered that with satellite photos it is possible to detect the degree of moisture of various types of soil —from the most arid desert to irrigated farm land. (66) More accurate information on snow cover in the Tien Shan and Himalaya Mountains has enabled farmers to irrigate the crops more effectively. Space surveys also make possible the study of the formation and dessication of intermittent lakes. (67)
In the future the Russians plan to use Earth resources data from space in a variety of fields. Space surveys will be used for estimating crop yields and monitoring insect infestation. Forests and large land reserves will be monitored for blights as well as for fires. (68) In 1971 an article appeared which claimed that scientists were using only 40 percent of the information contained in space imagery. The author stated that in the future advances in photo interpretation must allow the Russians to utilize the remaining 60 percent of the information contained in space photos. Improvements in resolution will enable agronomists to see finer features on the Earth's surface. To be of maximum use, such detailed photographs should be available on a daily basis. (69)
Eight Soviet scientists met with U.S. experts on the remote sensing of geology and agriculture in Sioux Falls, South Dakota in October 1975. NASA and U.S. Geological Survey representatives and several members of the Soviet delegation reviewed the results of the two nations' previous remote sensing projects in geology and considered possible future work in this area. Several of the Soviet scientists attended the first William T. Pecora Symposium on the applications of remote sensing to mineral and mineral fuel exploration held in Sioux Falls, October 28-31, 1975.
Other Soviet scientists will visit an agricultural area used as a test site for interpreting and evaluating data gathered by aircraft and satellites. (In 1974, American scientists visited a comparable Soviet test site near Kursk in the Ukraine.) Discussions with U.S. Department of Agriculture scientists are also planned.
This cooperative effort by NASA and the Soviet Academy of Sciences is one of several undertaken following an agreement reached in 1971 and formally endorsed at the May 1972 Moscow summit meeting. Another scientific exchange occurred in early 1973, when NASA and the Soviet Academy conducted an intensive study of the Bering Sea using satellites, aircraft and research ships to evaluate the usefulness of remote sensing for studies of sea ice conditions.
In an effort to improve remote sensing capabilities Soviet scientists are seeking ways to determine the vertical profile of temperature change beneath the ocean surface, chemical composition and salinity of the water, its chlorophyll content and evolution of turbulence and
wind conditions at the surface from space imagery. Such information would be of great value to fishing interests. (70)
B. MANNED FLIGHTS GATHERING EARTH RESOURCES DATA
The earlier section on manned flights has already treated the increasingly heavy emphasis which has been placed on gathering Earth resources data in manned flights, particularly in the Soyuz and Salyut programs. Soyuz 9 during the course of its 18-day flight went quite far in this regard, both because of the amount of time available for such pursuits and because it built upon the more limited experience of its predecessors. There is no necessity here to repeat the list of measurements made by the Soyuz flights. The Salyut flights have further extended this effort.
C. PERMANENT SPACE STATIONS
Articles on the future study of the Earth from space inevitably mention the desirability of permanent space stations. Russians place a high priority on the development of manned space stations. Discussion of Earth resources experiments has already described some of the experimental techniques that have been tried in connection with the Soyuz and Salyut manned flights. Many Soviet writers stress using manned flights and manned stations rather than unmanned satellites for future operational Earth resources work.
Of course, the potential uses of manned stations extend beyond Earth resources work. Cosmonaut Pavel Popovich has discussed the future use of manned stations for purposes of weather reporting, astronomy, navigation, and data relay. These manned stations would be supported by reusable shuttle craft, using conventional airfields for takeoffs and landings. (71)
A detailed list of functions for such stations was provided by Yu. Novikov in 1969, which in effect summarizes much of the discussions on such stations. He listed the advantages of optical and radio astronomical observations from beyond the atmosphere, the development of topographic maps of Earth, 'including underwater relief, the location of mountain and valley glaciers, lakes, flood plains, and deltas. He foresaw the ability to predict high water, salinity, location and amount of industrial wastes, ocean salinity, measures of crop maturity and detection of crop pest and disease infestation, and forecasts of crop yields on a timely and regular basis. (72)
G. I. Petrov attempted to translate the advantages of stations and other satellites into economic terms, suggesting that weather satellites alone could with a five-day accurate forecast save the equivalent of $6 billion a year. He foresaw in the more distant future, accurate forecasts of weather an entire year in advance, with enormous savings. He expected that high energy physics laboratories built in orbit would be far cheaper than corresponding laboratories on the surface of the Earth. Also, he saw space work leading to weather modification. (73)
More fanciful articles have envisioned the ultimate erection of whole cities in orbit, with these space bases used not only for the kinds of observational and relay missions heretofore described, but also for assembly and fueling of deep space craft to fly to the Moon and to other planets.
This Soviet emphasis on the numerous current and potential benefits of the space program is indicative of the Soviet belief in the usefulness and bright future of applications of space technology to man's needs.
References:
(A) SOVIET SPACE PROGRAMS, 1971-75, OVERVIEW, FACILITIES AND HARDWARE MANNED AND UNMANNED FLIGHT PROGRAMS, BIOASTRONAUTICS CIVIL AND MILITARY APPLICATIONS PROJECTIONS OF FUTURE PLANS, STAFF REPORT , THE COMMITTEE ON AERONAUTICAL AND SPACE .SCIENCES, UNITED STATES SENATE, BY THE SCIENCE POLICY RESEARCH DIVISION CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE, THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, VOLUME – I, AUGUST 30, 1976, GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1976,
59. TASS, Moscow, March 13, 1975, 2015 GMT.
60. TASS, Moscow, March 10, 1975, 1757, GMT.
61. Andronov, I., On. cit., p. 3.
62. Idem.
63. Pushkar, A., High-Altitude View, Izvestiya, Moscow, August 5, 1975, p. 5.
64. Bryukhanov, V., Aerogeologiya Trust, Orbital Geology, Izvestiya, Moscow, July 25, 1974, p. 2.
65. Op. cit., p. 3.
66. Vinogradov, B. V., and A. A. Grigor'yev, Vlagooborot V. Prirode i Yego Rol'v, Formir, Moscow, Resursov Presn Vod, Stroyizdat, 1973, pp. 204-217.
67. Idem.
68. Andronov, I., Op. cit., p. 3.
69. Wazirov, M., Satellites for the Agronomist, Zemlya Vselennaya, No. 1, Moscow, 1971, pp. 76-77.
70. Kndrat'yev, K., Cosmic View, Izveatiya, Moscow, January 22, 1975, p. 3.
71. Popovich, P., A Look Into the Future, Grazhdanshaya Aviatsiya, Moscow, No. 10, 1967, p. 10.
72. Novlkov, Yu., Orbital Stations; A Glance Into the Future, Tekhnika Molodezhl, Moscow, Nov. 3, 1996, pp. 22-23
73. Petrov, G. I., Why Master Space?, Znaniye-Sila, Moscow, No. 7, 1967.
• Ms. Raleigh Is a physical sciences analyst In the Science Policy Research Division, Congressional Research Service, The Library of Congress.
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