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Are you new to GEO and GEOSS? Find out more here!
Highlights
Romania to host GEO-V
GEO's next annual Plenary meeting will be held at the Palace of the Parliament in Bucharest, Romania on 19 and 20 November:
Useful links: Register for GEO-V • GEO-V Week at a glance • GEO-V meeting page
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Evaluating the GEO Portal prototypes |
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Components registration |
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Standards registration |
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The assessment phase for the GEO Portals runs until May 2009. The Portals are updated regularly so please make repeat visits and provide your feedback. |
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The GEO community is invited to register its data bases, catalogues, services and tools in the GEOSS Components and Services Registry |
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The GEO community is encouraged to register standards, protocols and other specifications for ensuring an interoperable “system of systems” in the GEOSS Registry |
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As of Monday, 03 Nov 2008 |
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JAXA hosts seminar on climate change observation
The 2nd Seminar on Space Based Observations for Climate Change was hosted by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) in Tokyo on 18 September. Responding to last July’s G-8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit Declaration, the seminar focused on accelerating GEOSS activities in the priority areas of climate and water-resource management.
It also examined the many important contributions that space agencies are making to GEOSS implementation. The summary report, presentations and other information are posted here.
What are GEO and GEOSS?
The Group on Earth Observations (or GEO) is coordinating international efforts to build a Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS). This emerging public infrastructure is interconnecting a diverse and growing array of instruments and systems for monitoring and forecasting changes in the global environment. This “system of systems” supports policymakers, resource managers, science researchers and many other experts and decision-makers.
Click here to learn more about GEOSS. You can find more details on how GEO functions on the "About GEO pages" and in the GEO Information Kit.
Bangladesh’s Meghna to be model basin for flood forecasting
Dhaka, Aug 11 (IANS) -- Bangladesh is set to evolve a model for forecasting floods and rainfall starting with the Meghna river after which the other river basins of the country would also also be included in the proposed system. The 10-year plan has been initiated with Meghna and the first model is set to be complete by 2011, the Daily Star reported Monday.
Flowing as the Ganga from the Himalayas in India, the river acquires the name Meghna once the Brahmaputra joins it in Bangladesh and is the major river system of the country.
The plan is being initiated in view of looming impact of climate change, under the framework of the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) to improve sustainable water resource management in Bangladesh. Read full article
Atlas of Africa’s Changing Environment demonstrates power of Earth observations
The Africa edition of the United Nations Environment Programme's “Atlas of our Changing Environment” highlights how modern Earth observation systems can support action to address humanity’s growing impact on the natural environment.
By comparing satellite images and ground photos of specific locations taken 30 years ago and then again today, the Atlas makes it possible to truly comprehend the decade-scale changes occurring in the African environment.
UNEP has presented the Atlas, which was released on 10 June, as a contribution to the Global Earth Observation System of Systems. For more information and a link to the Atlas, you can open or download the press release.
2nd GEOSS Asia-Pacific Symposium concludes in Tokyo
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Speakers and organizers at the 2nd Asia-Pacific Symposium, from left to right: Dr. Mamoru Mohri, Prof. José Achache, Dr. Rajendra K Pachauri, Mr. Yukihide Hayashi, Dr. Rabinder N. Malik, Mr. Shin Aoyama |
The Government of Japan welcomed some 300 scientists and experts from across the Asia-Pacific region to a three-day symposium in Tokyo on 14 - 16 April 2008. Keynote speaker Dr R.K. Pachauri, Chairman of the Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), said, "Global observing systems such as GEOSS promote information sharing and the synthesis of information; they serve the climate as a global public good."
The symposium considered new technologies and strategies for assessing and predicting climate change, which will be needed for future assessments by the IPCC and others. Other issues included adapting to the expected impacts of climate change on biodiversity and on water resources. The meeting also explored the potential role of GEOSS in monitoring forests and tracking the carbon cycle.
The aim of the Symposium was to strengthen GEOSS while supporting international efforts to understand and address climate change and its impacts on the region.
For more information, see the summary report, conference home page and press advisory
Developing Countries Get Help to Cope with Climate Change
(Environmental News Service, 28 February 2008)
WASHINGTON D.C. -- A new agreement between the World and the National Oceanic and Aeronautics Administration (NOAA) of the US promises to help realize the societal benefits of the Global Earth Observation System of Systems, particularly in the Americas. Read full article
A global revolution in Earth management
An editorial by the GEO Co-Chairs.
Climate change, the depletion of natural resources, the emergence of new diseases, and the loss of
biological diversity are amongst some of the most serious and complex challenges facing the human
race today... Download full text
"The Full Picture"
The Full Picture is an exciting
new full-colour publication detailing
selected Early Achievements and
other Earth observation projects
and services. You can download "The
Full Picture" by clicking on
the image on the left.
The First 100 Steps to GEOSS
The Early Achievements that governments
and organizations have contributed
to GEOSS have each been summarized
in a two-page brief and collected
in a document entitled “The First 100 Steps to GEOSS”.
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