IS REMOTE SENSING OPERATIONAL?
Robert B. McEwen
The American Society of Photogrammetry sponsored a symposium
"Operational Remote Sensing--An Interactive Seminar to Evaluate Cur-
rent Capabilities" at Houston, Texas, in Febraury 1972. More than
500 people attended, making it one of the largest symposiums on remote
sensing ever held. The program was divided into two major parts, the
first consisting of invited papers and the second of workshops and re-
ports from five discipline-oriented evaluation panels. A successful
display included operational remote-sensor-equipped aircraft open for
inspection and exhibits by over 30 commercial firms and government
agencies. Published proceedings of the symposium are available from
the American Society of Photogrammetry.
It is difficult to condense the symposium into a few paragraphs,
and a reviewer's opinions are unavoidably biased by his interests.
Many excellent papers went beyond the usual promising laboratory re-
sults. Real operational problems were discussed, along with the costs
of some prototype or operational projects. All the evaluation panels
had specialists familiar with remote-sensing technology and also users
who represented government agencies and private industry with opera-
tional missions. Users need workable techniques to gather useful
information about real problems at competitive costs. They are not
particularly interested in expensive laboratory research that cannot
be usefully applied except to justify more research.
There were many attempts to define "operational," usually in the
context of reliable equipment or techniques that produce useful infor-
mation for solving problems or making decisions. A precise definition
is probably not required since by almost any criterion a great many
examples show cases in which remote sensing has been oversold. Like-
wise, a few examples show cases of undersell.
The general theory and technology of most remote-sensing tech-
niques have been disseminated widely through symposiums and short
courses. Security classification is no longer a significant obstacle
to civilian applications, and commercial instruments are available--
although somewhat limited in number and variety. Satellites have
orbited an impressive and successful assortment of special sensors
around the Earth, Moon, Mars, and Venus. Some of the best examples
of remote sensing are in meteorology, where the phenomena of interest
are dynamic over the entire Earth. Meteorologists have also developed
the mathematical and physical models to use special remote sensor data.
Some people feel, with considerable justification, that remote
sensing has failed to live up to the enthusiastic expectations of
10 years ago. The promises, charisma, and mystery of remote sensing
in the 60's were unrealistic. A sober appraisal of the present
should provide firmer groundwork for the future. Photogrammetry has
much to contribute to remote sensing, in both geometry and interpre-
tation.
