MalaysiaGIS.com

Source: New Straits Times

The Science, Technology and Environment Ministry today signed a three-year licensing agreement with Radarsat International Inc, under which the Malaysia Centre for Remote Sensing (Macres) has bought rights to download data and images.

Its minister Datuk Seri Law Hieng Ding signed the agreement with Radarsat's International Network Station director Dr Pierre Engel, witnessed by Macres director Datuk Nik Nasruddin Mahmood and Radarsat Asia Pacific sales director Craig Johnson.

Previously, Macres relied on images purchased from other countries or satellite companies but had found such data to be outdated or unsuitable for Malaysia's use.

Law said Radarsat images would be used in projects to monitor coastal flooding during the monsoon season in Pahang, Kelantan, Terengganu and Kedah, and to monitor rice planting and crop yield.

Macres would undertake these projects with the Department of Irrigation and Drainage and the Agriculture Department. Radarsat has two satellites - Radarsat-1 and Radarsat-2.

Law said the satellites were suitable for Malaysia's use as they had the technology to capture images through clouds and at night.

"This is beneficial to us as Malaysia, with its tropical climate, is under cloud cover most of the time."

The real-time images will provide Macres with current information, which will facilitate better planning and responses.

The images will be downloaded at Macres' ground-receiving station for remote sensing in Temerloh, which began operations last December.

Law said the station was one of 20 ground-receiving stations in the world and cost RM85 million to build.

It has a coverage radius of 2,500km which enables it to receive images of an area spanning all Asean countries, southern China, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Macres is soon expected to sign two other agreements with French and American satellite companies, SPOT and Landsat.