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I. SPACE-BASED ISY MISSION COMPONENTS

Introduction

The working group focused its attention on the following areas:

• A review of information provided by ESA and NASDA of current and planned worldwide Earth observation systems;

• A means to develop an organized database of the parameters of those systems;

• An initial examination of the resources available at the beginning of the ISY time frame;

• The scientific areas that those initial resources may serve;

• The obviously absent capabilities that would extend the value of space-based Earth observations.

An Earth Observation Capabilities Database

  Earth observation from space offers numerous opportunities for new scientific insights and for extending present applications with precision and to areas of the world that are currently underserved. Those opportunities rely upon present systems and future plans of spacefaring nations.

  Descriptions of present, planned, and proposed systems are frequently published, but no organized database of the pertinent system and instrument parameters has been developed for the scientific and applications user community. Further, because no such database exists, users also have no means to be informed in a systematic manner of changes to system parameters.

  It is therefore recommended that the spacefaring nations of the world that have or plan to deploy Earth observation systems provide the information for such a database for the ten-year period from 1988-1998.

The Earth Observing System in 1992

  The information requested for the 1988-1998 period is obviously important for the overall objectives of the Global Change and ISY-proposed efforts. It is also important, however, to examine what can be done with space assets already in orbit that will continue to operate until the beginning of the ISY or that will be launched between now and then. While these assets will not be capable of measuring all desired parameters, they still represent a powerful resource that can be of great service to mankind if their data can be used both effectively and widely.

  It is appropriate to recall the report of the Pacific ISY Conference held in Hawaii in 1987. In that report, it is observed (page 9 of conference report) that:

"... several factors unique to Earth observations and the ISY were identified:

Remote sensing satellites provide a unique perspective of the Earth, and data from their sensors can be used to derive information beneficial to the management of Earth resources for all mankind. Several sensors will be on orbit by the year 1992, and so data from these spacecraft could form important components of the ISY."

  It is in keeping with that observation that the information shown on the next page was assembled. The left-hand column lists some of the scientific areas that might be addressed in a comprehensive study of Global Change and the objectives of ISY. The right-hand column is a list of the space or Space Shuttle payloads that will carry instruments addressing these areas:

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Transcription Notes:
Transcribed from top to bottom, left to right.