Digital photogrammetry has enjoyed a strong initial
growth in close-range operations and within those
organisations, for example the British Geological
Survey, already possessing skills in digital image
processing of remote sensing scenes.
e Some private companies, originally in surveying or
cartography, have moved into digital photogrammetry
with little traditional photogrammetric experience.
e High resolution scanners have been introduced.
eo The emergence and development of new software
products (DEMs, orthophotos) based on PC/Windows
solutions has been rapid.
e Orthophotographs are being marketed as an
independent product by Hunting Aerofilms, BKS, SDS,
and NRSC, and used as a component of project
mapping by other organisations. An undeveloped
market for orthophotos is seen to exist in planning,
tourism and the utilities.
e GPS including airborne GPS has rapidly established
prominence for photo-control.
2.8 The contribution overseas
Almost three quarters (72%) of the responding
organisations listed overseas areas of operations, in
many cases involving global connections with more than
ten overseas countries. All of the larger private
organisations reported substantial overseas
commitments, in project mapping, environmental
modelling, consultancy and trade.
All but two of the universities reported the registration of
overseas students, from a wide range of countries, for
postgraduate taught and research degrees.
The wide UK involvement in overseas photogrammetric
activities is reflected in the fact that the only government
funded and private organisations not involved are a few of
the small private companies and those government
organisations specifically dealing with the United
Kingdom.
3. REMOTE SENSING
This section of the report was sourced from corporate,
research institute and academic membership of The
Remote Sensing Society. Whilst it is anticipated that the
majority of the UK ‘professional’ remote sensing
community was consulted, this survey may not be
representative of the total user-community in the UK as a
whole as the technology finds its way across disciplines
and to lower levels in the educational sector. Thus,
smaller users and those who use remote sensing only
incidentally may well not have been included in the
survey. As an example, the Remote Imaging Group (RIG)
currently boasts a UK and worldwide membership of 2150
in 1995, an increase from 1300 in 1992. RIG is an
amateur based organisation with members either
hobbyists, semi-professionals or having educational
interests in remote sensing and satellite systems in
general. Most members are interested in the technical
challenges of receiving and decoding meteorological
satellite data. The large expansion in four years reflects
the increasingly popularity of remote sensing and related
technologies and the availability of equipment affordable
to the enthusiast.
The major structural change in Governmental
involvement in remote sensing since 1992 has been two-
fold. Firstly, in 1993-4 research funding for Earth
Observation was unified under the umbrella of the Natural
Environment Research Council which took over
responsibilities for atmospheric and instrumental research
from the former Science and Engineering Research
Council, in addition to its existing remote sensing duties
and interests. The change in total funding to NERC has
perhaps led to a swing towards an applications and user-
led remote sensing research emphasis and away from
technologically-driven developments. The second most
notable change has been the increasing support for
remote sensing from the Government through the British
National Space Centre, the organisation established in
1985 charged with carrying out governmental space
policy. BNSC's initiatives have largely been through its
Link and Applications Development Programmes to
designed both to stimulate greater involvement and
collaboration between academic research and industrial
organisations as well as to stimulate ‘near-market
research into operational and commercial applications
with the involvement of end-users.
3.1 Changing patterns of employment
Data for this analysis were obtained using questionnaires
sent to corporate members of the Remote Sensing
Society, as well as to research institutes and university
departments with a known strong interest in remote
sensing applications and research. Of the 55
questionnaires sent out, 37 were returned, a response
rate of 67%. Of these 16 came from private companies,
14 from higher education institutions and 7 from research
institutes.
In terms of changing patterns of employment, the
responses produced the breakdown according to size as
shown in Table 3.1. Only two organisations, both private,
admitted to less than 1 person year of effort per annum
for the period 1992-96. Sixty percent of those responding
employed over 6 people, with two organisations claiming
over 100 person years in remote sensing and related
activities, including the clerical and managerial support
required to undertake involvement at such a level.
TABLE 3.1 Responses to annual effort expended in
remote sensing research to 1992 and 1996
(figures in brackets indicate percentages).
Employment Number of Number of
(person years) organisations organisations
(1989-92) (1992-96)
Over 25 12 (11.5) 8 (22.2)
6-25 29 (27.9) 14 (38.9)
1-5 48 (46.2) 12 (33.3)
less than 1 15 (14.4) 2 (5.6)
90
International Archives of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. Vol. XXXI, Part B6. Vienna 1996
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