December 3rd, 2008 Category: Earth Observation, Events

The 4th International Workshop on Science and Applications of SAR Polarimetry and Polarimetric Interferometry - POLinSAR 2009

The European Space Agency is organising POLinSAR 2009, the 4th International Workshop on Science and Applications of SAR Polarimetry and Polarimetric Interferometry, which will be hosted in ESRIN, Frascati, Italy on 26-30 January 2009.

Objectives

The main objectives of the workshop are to:

• Provide a forum for scientific exchange and to initiate and encourage close collaboration between individual research groups
• Exploitation of spaceborne missions
• Present new results from the latest studies in the field and to assess the state-of-the-art
• Present polarimetric and interferometric results from ALOS PALSAR, RADARSAT-2 and TerraSAR-X
• Assess the available Pol-InSAR tools and datasets
• Review the bio-geophysical parameters that can be retrieved and their accuracy
• Make recommendations for algorithm development and new products, future missions and applications
• Report on progress/status of recommendations of PolInSAR 2007

The workshop will focus on theory and methods in the fields of SAR Polarimetry and Polarimetric Interferometry around the following theme:

1. SAR Polarimetric Interferometry (Pol-InSAR)
2. Theoretical Modelling
3. Applications of SAR Polarimetry
   • Land: Forest, Agriculture, Environment (Urban, global change, land cover), Wetlands
   • Ocean: Pollution Monitoring, Ship detection, Ocean Parameters Retrieval, Sea Features
   • Cryosphere: Snow, Land Ice and Sea Ice Monitoring
   • Hazards: Fire Monitoring, Volcanoes, Flooding, Earthquake
4. Polarimetry and Persistent Scatterer Interferometry (PSI)
5. Compact Polarimetry
6. ALOS PALSAR, TerraSAR-X, RADARSAT-2, COSMO-SkyMed results
7. Future Spaceborne missions for Pol-InSAR
8. Airborne Pol-InSAR campaigns

Tags: ALOS ASAR ESA Esrin International Workshop Italy PALSAR Polarimetric Interferometry Polinsar RADARSAT-2 Rome SAR SAR Polarimetry TerraSAR-X | Comments |

September 9th, 2008 Category: Events, Snapshots

September 9th, 2008 - The island of Rhodes

The island of Rhodes is shaped like a spearhead, 79.7 km (49.5 mi) long and 38 km (24 mi) wide, with a total area of approximately 1,400 square kilometres (541 sq mi) and a coastline of approximately 220 km (137 mi). The city of Rhodes is located at the northern tip of the island, as well as the site of the ancient and modern commercial harbours. The main air gateway (Diagoras International Airport, IATA code: RHO) is located 14 km (9 mi) to the southwest of the city in Paradisi. The road network radiates from the city along the east and west coasts.

In terms of flora and fauna, Rhodes is closer to Asia Minor than to the rest of Greece. The interior of the island is mountainous, sparsely inhabited and covered with forests of pine (Pinus brutia) and cypress (Cupressus sempervirens). The island is home to the Rhodian deer. In Petaludes Valley (Greek for “Valley of the Butterflies”), large numbers of tiger moths gather during the summer months. Mount Attavyros, at 1,216 metres (3,990 ft), is the island’s highest point of elevation. While the shores are rocky, the island has arable strips of land where citrus fruit, wine grapes, vegetables, olives and other crops are grown.

Outside of the city of Rhodes, the island is dotted with small villages and beach resorts, among them Faliraki, Lindos, Kremasti, Haraki, Pefkos, Archangelos, Afantou, Koskinou, Embona (Attavyros), Paradisi, and Trianta (Ialysos). Tourism is the island’s primary source of income.

Events

ALOS Symposium 2008, organised by ESA in cooperation with JAXA, ASF, GA and GISTDA, will be held on the island of Rhodes, Greece, from 3 to 7 November 2008.

Tags: ALOS Greece Rhodes | Comments |