 Achievements and cooperation with ISPRS
By Xiao Wang (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-07-03 07:58 In China, photogrammetry, remote sensing and Geographic Information System (GIS) have been playing increasingly important roles in mapping, planning, resources management, disaster monitoring, and environment protection. Remarkable progress has been made in these areas, especially in the last 20 years. With support from the central government of China, the framework of technological innovation and applications of these disciplines has been established. Achievements
In recent years, China has made rapid developments in remote sensing platforms and sensors. Different series of satellites have been launched since the late 1980s to form four satellite remote sensing systems on meteorology, oceanics, resources, and environment and disaster relief. The first China-Brazil joint earth resource satellite CBERS-01 was launched in 1999 and the CBERS-02 was launched in 2003. The CBERS-03/04 earth resource satellites are being developed and expected to be launched in the near future. China has been launching its geostationary climate satellite - the Fengyun (FY) series since 1988. The FY-2C was launched in 2004 and more FY satellites will be launched in the near future. China's oceanic satellite HY-1A with polar climate satellite FY-1D was launched in 2002. With the research, development and generalization of the depth and strength of digital photogrammmetry by the end of last century, Digital Photogrammetry Workstations (DPWs) have been popularized in China. At present, the mainstream DPWs in China are VirtuoZo, developed by Wuhan University, and JX-4, developed by the Chinese Academy of Surveying and Mapping Science. They are also extending the function of supporting Close Range Photogrammetry. China has developed copyright-owned GIS softwares since the beginning of the 1990s. At present, there are some representative national commercial GIS software, for example, GeoStar, MapGIS, and SuperMap. These softwares occupy more than 50 percent of market share in China. In the area of resource investigation, satellite images have become the primary information source in China. The application of remote sensing in land resource has widely been adopted by cities and towns. For the purpose of disaster monitoring, such as that for fire, drought and flood, photogrammetry and remote sensing technologies have been widely used in disaster prediction, monitoring and mitigation. China has built up a remote sensing satellite ground station capable of receiving data from either electro-optical or radar-based Earth observation satellites. China has established its own meteorological satellite data reception and processing system, including the Beijing Meteorological Satellite Data Processing Center and three meteorological satellite data stations in Beijing, Urumqi and Guangzhou. The system is designed to receive data from both domestic and foreign satellites and has provided a great deal of real-time cloud images for China's weather forecast departments. The regular operation of the meteorological satellite system has greatly improved the accuracy of extreme weather forecasts, resulting in an annual loss reduction of several billion yuan. Cooperation The Chinese government consistently encourages scientists to share their achievements and experiences with their international colleagues, and to take part in and contribute to the activities of international academic organizations including the International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS). China and ISPRS exchanges began in 1980 when China was accepted as a member of the International Society for Photogrammetry and first attended the 14th ISPRS conference in Hamburg, Germany. Since then, China has participated in the ISPRS congress each time. At the 16th ISPRS conference in 1988 in Kyoto, Japan, Professor Wang Zhizhuo was named the association's honorary member. At the 20th ISPRS conference in 2004 in Istanbul, Turkey, China won the right to host the 21st congress. The general assembly of the conference also established the "Wang Zhizhuo Award" provided by the Chinese Society of Geodesy, Photogrammetry and Cartography, to commemorate the founder of Chinese photogrammetry and remote sensing, and to promote the progress of space information science. (China Daily 07/03/2008 page16) |
