Irish Scientists Gaining Ground In Earth Observation Race

That's one of the messages that was presented at Ireland's premier gathering of Earth Observation specialists which took place last Thursday in the offices of the Geological Survey of Ireland (GSI).

Earth Observation is a fast-growing area of scientific research and, from a small base just a few short years ago, Ireland is now contributing a range of outstanding research methodologies and projects to global understanding of the dynamics of our Earth.

The Third Irish Earth Science Observation Symposium showcased some of the best contributions by Irish scientists to date.

According to the Symposium's Technical Director, Michael Sheehy of the GSI, "information being acquired in Ireland is contributing to a global understanding of climate change and how our planet functions.

"For example, such information is being used to develop strategies for coping with coastal and river flooding, and it is also being applied to indentify areas susceptible to landslides."

He went on to explain that Earth Observation is primarily delivered via a mechanism of remote sensing, whereby the sensor being used is not in contact (remote) with what it's recording (sensing).

Various applications are involved in Earth Observation - land, sea, air and space - and the technologies used include satellite, ship-based and airborne.