UN/EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY JOINT TRAINING COURSE ON SATELLITE APPLICATIONS FRASCATI, ITALY, 13-24 NOVEMBER
Press Release
DEV/2077
OS/1715
UN/EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY JOINT TRAINING COURSE ON SATELLITE APPLICATIONS FRASCATI, ITALY, 13-24 NOVEMBER
19951113 NEW YORK, 13 November (Department for Development Support and Management Services) -- A two-week training course, jointly organized by the United Nations and the European Space Agency, on the applications of satellite data gathered by the European Remote Sensing Satellite-1 (ERS-1) begins today in Frascati, Italy. The training course will demonstrate the relevant applications of that satellite data to natural resources, renewable energy, environment and other areas.Organized for the benefit of experts from Asia and the Pacific, the training course is hosted by the European Space Research Institute, the European Space Agency's affiliate in Italy, which is responsible for coordinating with the users of data from the Agency's remote sensing satellite. Eighteen experts in the field of remote sensing, selected from 17 Asian and Pacific countries, will attend the session which will end on 24 November.
The ERS-1 satellite, developed by the European Space Agency and launched in 1991 with the European Ariane launcher, is the first in a series of radar remote sensing satellites that will ensure availability of data beyond the year 2000. The training course is aimed at building the capacity of the experts in practical applications of this technology, with particular emphasis on geology and mineral prospecting, oceanography and coastal zone management, agriculture, forestry and meteorology. The aim of the course is to facilitate active response by the experts to the problems of land management and environmental protection in their respective countries. This technology should assist them to respond to the recommendations of the International Convention to Combat Desertification, particularly in Africa; the global plan of action for Habitat II and Agenda 21.
The training programme and information materials for the course were developed jointly by the United Nations and the European Space Agency, which will also provide facilities and lecturers. The lecturers will include high- level experts in remote sensing applications. Funds for the training course are being provided by the United Nations Trust Fund for New and Renewable Sources of Energy; the primary contributor to that Fund is the Government of Italy.
This is the third in a series of training courses on the topic. The previous two were for French-speaking experts in Africa and for Spanish- speaking experts in Latin America.
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