Hazards Watch Reducing the Impacts of Disasters Through Improved Earth Observations: Summary of a Workshop (2004) / Chapter Skim
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Disasters Roundtable: Hazards Watch -- Reducing the Impacts of Disasters Through Improved Earth Observations
Disasters Roundtable: Hazards Watch -- Reducing the Impacts of Disasters Through Improved Earth Observations
Pages 1-13
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Earth observations are ~ in climate monitoring search and rescue operations, property protection, and as stated above, disaster rr~hgaho~ to narre a few. There are many components of an Earth observahon system such as seismology for earthquake, geodesy for precise rreasurerrent of the Earth's surface and shape, geomagnebsm for solar storms that can damage billions of doDars worth of electrical grids and comrr~nicahons assets, and volcanology for detecting vertical moverrent at the Earth's surface and wading of ~ions.
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It also established an interg~verr~rental ad hoc group on Earth Observations (GEO) to develop a Midyear Implementation for achieving a comprehensive, coordinated and sustained Earth observation system GEO trot for the first ~ during the the days fohov~ng the Summit and invited gets and international and regional organizations sponsoring existing Earth observing networks to participate.
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COSPA~SARSAT~, a system that rides on Earth observing satellites of several countnes to support search and rescue aided tracking has already assisted in saving over 15,000 lives rld~de since it became operational in 1982 (NOAA' 2003~. Researchers can and have ~1 Earth observing system data for scientific and econorr~c advancerrent, sustainable developrrent, and population growth impact stuches.
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Army Corps of Engineers, using Earth observing t~hnologres, exarn~ned every square Me of coast affected by Isabel for damages, facilitating speedy repair and recovery, particularly along the hard-hit North Carolina coast. ACHIEVING INTEGRATED EARTH OBSERVATIONS: CURRENT STATUS There are 73 satellites med for Earth observations currently in orbit, thousands of ground level networks, and hunts of airborne information collectors.
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Earth observation satellites are used for the development of flood impact prediction maps, contributing measurements of landscape topography, land use, and surface wetness for use in hydrological models. Weather satellites provide key information on rainfall predictions to assist flood event forecasting.
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NOAA advances the ocean and atmospheric part of EROS through its products and services. NOAA's work involves positioning Earth observing satellites and Irking with data consurr~ion centers.
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WMO's work involves four stages: relieving user r~rerrents, examining existing and planned observation s~tems, conducting critical review to assess capabilities and how successfully fits have been met, end producing guidance for WMO members on sate~it - Mated technological developments as v~1 as on changes in relevant existing rreteorolog~cal and hydrological operation skaters WMO promotes thematic integration of atmospheric climate, oceans and terrestrial data in a constantly evolving manner in order to adapt proactively to a fast changing environment. The following points emerged during the discussion Challen~sin Restart and Do: Continued research on Earth observations is essential to achieve a f~lyintegratedintetnational Earth observation system In order to attain funding for research, it is necessary to educate the public about the societal benefits of the research Eqmprrent costs for Earth observations s~tems consurre a large portion of the total research buds, but program managers work to make it all fit together so that researchers get precisely what they need and research products are disseminated in the best may possible.
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Opportunities exist to apply Earth observations to construction engineering in order to avoid disaster losses. D=ing the November 2002 flake (magnitude 7.9)
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Fire Rather inputs, landscape mapping fire behavior models and behavior, infrastructure data, and data on the urban/v~diandinterface ail draw from E OS in various Am. Challenges of using {E OS data for wildfire management include linking data across scales, collecting various Am; of data over venous firne periods and With varying spatial resolutions.
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Concurrent observations from satellites, planes, and ground sources help map fire pararreters and improve fire behavior models. Earth observations help emergency responders anticipate burn area conditions (e.g.
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NASA researchers look for pathways from research ~ operational s~tems and recognize that satellites not do the entire job of Earth observation. For this reason, policy~ra~rs rust ret rate ground-based and in situ Earth observation networks.
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Wham Gait Director, Advanced Programs for Earth Science, Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp Is the final spar of the day, presenting a beefing entitled "Curves on the Road to an Integrated Earth Observation S~tem" The justification for {E OS resides in its value as an env~onm~tal treaty compliance monitor, contributions to a wde variety of businesses and commercial ventures, weather and climate forecasting value, decision support value to gets, and the ability to reduce vulnerability to natural hazards. The {EOS is part of a larger env~ronrrental information infrastructure which is facing growing demands from users and an increasing need for coordination and enhancerrent.
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SUMMI N G UP Dming this workshop, participants discussed and exan~ned how an {EOS ~uld work and now current Earth observations contribute to the rustication of natural disasters. As noted by Ghassem Asrar, for the first time in history we have the scientific exercise and the technological capability to study and understand the underling processes of Earth system change, and to dramatically improve forecasts of natural disasters.
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