Saudi Arabia and Earth Observation Systems
Remote sensing technology and its applications have been quickly advancing in recent years. Such advances include improved spectral and spatial resolutions, as well as high data delivery rate and frequency of revisits. This has led to an increased number of applied projects and advanced research activities in Earth observation and the study of Earth resources.
In recognition of the viability of this technology, the Saudi Centre for Remote Sensing (SCRS) was established in 1986 as a division of the Space Research Institute. The responsibilities of SCRS include data reception and distribution to various users, promoting the use of satellite data and building a rich data archive. In support of this effort, SCRS signed a number of agreements to receive satellite data from various satellites. Currently, SCRS receives and distributes satellite images from the Land Remote Sensing Satellite (Landsat), SPOT-1, SPOT-2 and SPOT-4, RADARSAT, the Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRS-1C and IRS-1D) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) satellites. The coverage area of the SCRS reception ground station extends to a radius of 2,700 km, with about 23 million km2 of surface area coverage. The ground station is capable of simultaneously receiving multiple satellites and it is fully automated for satellite tracking reception. With the recent upgrading of its reception and image analysis and processing capabilities, SCRS is now considered one of the leading centres worldwide.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
