Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. 24/7 Space News .




EARTH OBSERVATION
Use Of Commercial Earth Observation Data To Triple
by Staff Writers
Paris, France (SPX) Jun 17, 2010


Driving this increasing demand is the growing prevalence of commercial high-resolution optical and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) systems, improved image accuracy and reduced data-delivery times, making commercial data suitable for defense intelligence needs, which was not previously the case.

Euroconsult has released a comprehensive study analyzing the mechanisms defense and security agencies will use to satisfy their image intelligence (IMINT) requirements over the coming decade. In its new report "Earth Observation: Defense and Security, World Prospects to 2019," Euroconsult forecasts government procurement of commercial satellite Earth observation (EO) data will reach $2.6 billion by 2019, up from only $735 million in 2009.

As governments try to reconcile their increasingly sophisticated IMINT needs with growing budget constraints, agencies around the world are exploring a variety of solutions.

"Defense budgets are under pressure and developing autonomous satellite capacities remains costly, just as commercial Earth observation data is becoming a viable solution for defense and security applications," said Adam Keith, the Montreal-based Director of Earth Observation for Euroconsult.

"This combination of factors will encourage governments to look towards the most cost-effective combination of solutions to meet their IMINT requirements, including development of dual-use systems, increasing government cooperation to access third-party systems, and purchasing commercial data."

Driving this increasing demand is the growing prevalence of commercial high-resolution optical and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) systems, improved image accuracy and reduced data-delivery times, making commercial data suitable for defense intelligence needs, which was not previously the case.

Despite these less expensive alternatives, spending for government-owned EO satellites is also expected to see a healthy increase, creating significant returns for the satellite manufacturing industry. From 2000-2009, governments in nine nations launched 57 satellites specifically developed for defense applications, representing overall revenues of $12.5 billion for the satellite manufacturing industry worldwide.

Over the coming decade, Euroconsult expects manufacturing revenues to grow to $18.3 billion with a marked increase in number of satellites and average revenue per satellite increasing slightly.

The U.S. market has led the way in uptake of commercial data for IMINT. Commercial revenues from U.S. defense and security agencies reached $430 million in 2009, representing more than half of all commercial data distributed globally to defense users. Adoption of commercial data solutions for defense applications has remained more modest in other markets, largely due to the only-relatively-recent availability of commercial data suitable for defense and security purposes.

However, the next generation of high-resolution, high-accuracy commercial solutions and development of data reseller networks around the world will contribute to growing adoption in number of other markets in the coming decade.

The Euroconsult report also examines prevailing government attitudes toward EO procurement, including customer requirements for IMINT/GEOINT; the use of satellites and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to gather data; and the risks and challenges governments face in using commercial data. A separate section of the report looks at trends and analysis in EO satellite manufacturing, including average satellite costs and market value by region; government defense programs and initiatives; autonomous satellite capacity; financing mechanisms (including dual-use); and the business of high-resolution data suppliers. The report includes profiles of a range of government customers, including those in the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, India, Israel, Japan, South Korea, United Arab Emirates, and Inter-Governmental Organizations such as NATO and EUSC.

.


Related Links
Euroconsult
Earth Observation News - Suppiliers, Technology and Application






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








EARTH OBSERVATION
ISS Keeps Watch On World's Sea Traffic
Paris, France (ESA) Jun 16, 2010
As the ISS circles Earth, it has begun tracking individual ships crossing the seas beneath. An experiment hosted by ESA's Columbus module is testing the viability of monitoring global traffic from the Station's orbit hundreds of kilometres up. The ship-detection system under test is based around the Automatic Identification System (AIS), the marine equivalent of the air traffic control sys ... read more


EARTH OBSERVATION
Moon Whets Appetite For Water

Water Content Of Moon's Interior Underestimated

Model Helps Search For Moon Dust Fountains

NASA Langley to Break Ground on Hydro Impact Basin

EARTH OBSERVATION
UK Space Agency Funds International Mars Rover

NASA Dryden Hosts Radar Tests For Next Mars Landing

Spirit Remains Silent At Troy

Ancient Ocean May Have Covered One-Third Of Mars

EARTH OBSERVATION
Orion Spacecraft Takes Shape

There's More Than One String To The Avionics Testing Fiddle

Japan's 'space yacht' starts sailing

Elbit Systems To Unveil EoShiel

EARTH OBSERVATION
China Sends Research Satellite Into Space

China eyes Argentina for space antenna

Seven More For Shenzhou

China Signs Up First Female Astronauts

EARTH OBSERVATION
Russian, US astronauts dock with ISS: official

Three New Expedition 24 Crew Members Dock With ISS

New ISS Crew Members Prepare For Docking

Three New Crew Members En Route To ISS

EARTH OBSERVATION
Iridium And SpaceX Sign Major Commercial Launch Contract

Successful Launch Of Swedish Prisma satellites

South Korea Delays Rocket Launch

SpaceX Achieves Orbital Bullseye With Inaugural Flight Of Falcon 9 Rocket

EARTH OBSERVATION
Kepler Data On Potential Extrasolar Planets Released

CoRoT Unveils A Rich Assortment Of New Exoplanets

Exoplanet Caught On The Move

'Out Of Whack' Planetary System

EARTH OBSERVATION
Medical phone, vibrating earphone shine at trade show

France joins probes into Google Street View

San Francisco passes mobile phone radiation law

Asian technology firms bet on a 3D future




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement