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International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, Vol XXXV, Part B6. Istanbul 2004
6.ITALIAN SPACE AGENCY
In 2003 the Italian Government appointed Prof. Sergio Vetrella
(for several years EARSeL Chairman) as Commissary of the
Italian Space Agency (ASI). The necessity to reorganise the
Agency restricted tremendously the financial support to the
Research Community. ASI, on the basis of the Italian
Government Directives, has already started joint activities with
ESA programs and other International Space Agencies (i.e.,
NASA, CNES, DLR, CONAE).
Italy has a fundamental role in the following projects:
e Vega: the strategic ESA small-medium launcher;
e Galileo: the Europe's own global navigation satellite
system ;
e. Cosmo-Sky Med: the first dual satellites constellation
for high resolution Earth Observation (ORFEO
program) jointly with the Pleiades program defined by
CNES; in its final configuration Cosmo-Skymed
should provide a constellation of about seven
satellites equipped with SAR and hyperspectral
sensors, designed to provide data in the fields of risk
management, geology, agriculture and forest systems,
land management and ecology, monitoring of coastal
zones and law enforcement.
The Italian Space Program 2003-2005 is the first that derives
from the guidelines included in the Research National Program
proposed by the Instruction and Research Ministry. The central
focus of the Program is the application oriented approach,
where the research and the innovation are important to reach
well defined product-objectives. There are five main thematic
areas: Earth Observation, Telecommunication, Navigation,
Medicine and Biotechnology, Astronomy and Astrophysics .
Concerning Earth Observation, strong relevance has been
focused on four main arguments: oil spill, landslides, floods and
forest fires. Activities on this topics are planned to start in 2004.
ASI also supported a project proposed by AIT devoted to
validation of satellite-derived thematic products, and to satellite
data calibration and validation.
7.ASSOCIATIONS
The Italian Remote Sensing Association (AIT) was particularly
active in promoting the use of remote sensing data at different
level of expertise through the organisation of thematic seminars
and workshop. AIT is member of the Federation of the
Scientific Societies for the Geographic and Environmental
Information (ASITA) since 1997 that includes also the
Scientific Associations SIFET, AIC and AM/FM GIS Italy; all
these associations are involved with different aspects of
Geomatics. In particular:
SIFET is the Society for Topography and Photogrammetry,
representing Italy within the International Society for
Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS);
AIC is the Cartography Association, representing Italy in the
International Cartography Association (ICA);
AM/FM/GIS Italia - | Automated Mapping/Facilities
Management/ Geographic Information System/ltalia;
The 7” National Conference of ASITA was held in Verona, 27-
31 October 2003. About 1.300 participants attended the
Conference, 350 paper were published in the Proceedings, and
more than 60 exhibitors presented their technical solutions in
the field of the Geographic Information. Eberhard Parlow,
EARSeL Chairman presented an invited paper in the
introductive plenary session of the Conference. Further
information about the several activities promoted by ASITA can
be found at the Web site: www.asita.it.
243
Since 1996 AIT is also Associate Member of ISPRS and has
about 450 Members. Each year AIT publishes three issues of
the Italian reviewed Remote Sensing Journal (Rivista Italiana di
Telerilevamento), and supports and organises several training
courses concerning EO and GIS, as well as National and
International thematic workshops.
8.LABORATORIES
CNR- Institute for the Electromagnetic Detection of the
Environment (IREA), Milan
The activities of the Institute have concerned with: Geomatics,
optical passive remote sensing; active remote sensing in the
microwave band; electromagnetic diagnostics; modelling of the
electromagnetic interaction processes; integration of
multisource spatial data for environment monitoring;
evaluation of exposure and of biological effects related to
electromagnetic fields. Simulation of optical Cosmo-Skymed
imagery is among the major activities.
The Institute has strong interest and activities concerning
Education and Training.
CNR-Institute for Atmospheric Pollution (IA), Monterotondo
(Rome)
This Institute manages the hyperspectral airborne MIVIS sensor
in cooperation with CGR (Compagnia Generale Ripreseaeree,
Parma, Italy). In the last four years several initiatives were
focused on the deployment of the MIVIS sensor over the Italian
territory and relevant environmental issues were studied by
MIVIS data, particularly referred to vegetated areas, and to
urban areas to detect asbestos and to monitor the impact of
waste disposal. MIVIS data were also acquired during the Etna
eruption occurred in July-August, thus providing valuable data
for volcanologic research and to support ASTER data
validation.
A special issue of the Italian Remote Sensing Journal (edited by
the Italian Remote Sensing Association) was devoted to the
results of the MIVIS workshop held at Colorno (Parma), on
June 2000. This issue contains 17 papers spanning a wide range
of applications including urban, marine and lagoon
environments analysis and investigations, lake monitoring, and
archaeological investigation. Many of the papers discussed the
results obtained in studying active volcanic areas of southern
Italy, and in performing atmospheric correction and calibration
of the MIVIS sensor. A relevant feature, common to all the
papers, was the contribution provided by field spectral
signatures acquired in the 350-2500 nm wavelength range to
support MIVIS data calibration and validation.
Among the major research activities of IIA is the analysis of the
relationship between reflectance and physical characteristics of
the snow cover in polar regions. Several field surveys were
carried out at Ny-Alesund, Svalbard and at Terra Nova Bay,
Victoria Land, Antarctica, to acquire spectroradiometric and
ancillary data of different snow and ice surfaces. Field
reflectance was measured in the spectral range 350-2500 nm,
and snow data including temperature, grain size and shape,
density and water content, surface layer morphology, vertical
profile of the snow pack were also collected. A detailed analysis
of reflectance based on snow physical structure was performed.
Field reflectance data were also re-sampled at the spectral
intervals of Landsat TM to compare the ability of identifying
different snow targets at discrete wavelength intervals.
Field data were all organised into a relational data base called
SISpec.
