Given these attributes, and recognizing the aura of synthesis that surrounds
remote sensing, one can assess its place with respect to the eight standards
given above.
Classroom instruction : There are hundreds of university courses, short
courses, seminars, symposia, and workshops offered each year in the United
States on all aspects of remote sensing. Perhaps it is too soon for the
public to discriminate among qualities, but time will clearly favour
those having the highest technical and professional standards. No serious
attempt has been made, either by the teaching profession or professional
societies, to assess the quality of classroom instruction, and for good .
reason are not likely to do so. For a review of educational programs
see Dahlberg and Jensen (1981) and Gilber (1981).
Examinations : At present there are no licensing examinations required
in the United States for remote sensing. ASP sponsors a Certification
Program, but this carries no legal stature and does not constitute an
endorsement or guarantee by ASP as to the quality of any individual's
job performance. Master's and Ph.D. examinations constitute the most
advanced form of professional recognition into the field.
Professional journals and books : This is probably the best developed
form of standard presently existing for professionals in remote sensing.
They cater, however, to those willing to publish their efforts. They
obviously do not serve to uncover incompetence or those who function
on the fringes of ethics. There are several excellent national and interna-
tional journals, and literally dozens of reference and text books that
are functioning as standard bearers for the field (cf. Morain, 1981).
Independent technical standards : To the author's knowledge only one
technical standard has so far emerged from remote sensing technology.
This is the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Condition-
ing Engineer's (ASHRAE) standard on thermal infrared sensing for energy
conservation (ASHRAE Standard 101P, as reported by Burrer, 1980). The
purpose of the standard is to "...describe acceptable procedures and
specifications for the applied use of infrared radiation sensing devices
for assessment of building heat loss characteristics and interpretation
of data resulting therefrom (Burrer, 1980)." Although Standard 101P con-
tains a section on data interpretation, the drafting committee recognized
that operator training and certification would require formalization
through other efforts. As the field progresses, there will surely be
more standards drafted. Operator certification Will probably come through
licensing boards. ;
i
i
)
Legal precedents : Remote sensing data and interpretations are not stran-
gers to the American court roóm but few, if any, landmark cases have.
yet come forward. According to Latin et al (1976) for policy, planning
and compliance"...there are essentially no formal constraints upon the
kinds of information that may be utilized beyond a threshold requirement
that the data be relevant to the issues at hand (p. 1328)". They go on
to say that "...the burden of persuasion ought to be placed on the li-
tigant who conducts a scientific process, collects the evidence and urges
its adminission in court (p. 1418)." "Given that the technology is rapid-
ly evolving, that few explicit judicial precedents exist for the admission
of remote sensing evidence, and that the premature submission of insuf-
ficiently reliable output may lead to adverse decisions that could pre-
judice the future acceptance of remote sensing, (it is not surprising
that there has been) a reluctance...to rely on remote sensing information
Morain 4
