The Russian company ScanEx RDC has announced two new initiatives on applying satellite methods in education and environmental protection.
From the point of education, a new joint proposal by ScanEx and the Israeli company ImageSat Int. has been put forward to higher educational institutions of different countries. The two companies have proposed to supply UNISCAN stations capable of receiving satellite images, complete with annual license for reception of 100 scenes from the Israeli satellite EROS A (1.9 meter of spatial resolution). This will enable the staff and students of higher educational institutions to receive at their own stations up-to-date data of near real-time imagery with spatial resolution that was early available only for the military and intelligence.
Another initiative is the joint project involving ScanEx and the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) titled, “Satellite Technologies for Protection of Seal Pups in the White Sea”.
Uncontrolled vessel passage in early spring through ice floes that serve as “nursery” for seals is one of the reasons for their mass mortality in the White Sea. Per specialists’ estimation around 500 – 1000 seal pups die during each of these ice channeling operations.
In spring 2009 ScanEx RDC in conjunction with IFAW will start the project on monitoring ship traffic and ice channeling across the seal “whelping” locations in the White Sea. In addition, the ice channeling operations completed in 2007 and 2008 are being documented based on the data received by IFAW on seal “whelping” locations from the archives of ScanEx RDC.
“For fifteen years IFAW has been waging the campaign in Russia to protect baby harp seals from hunting and harmful anthropogenic impact. We are glad that starting this year we’ll be able to expand our capabilities in the effort of protecting the White Sea population with the support of such competent company as ScanEx. This will give people a chance to view the situation literally from space, provide the campaign with additional visual aids and arguments, and I believe will make significant contribution to the overall success”, sais Maria Vorontsova, Director of the Russian IFAW Office.
