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Asia is moving rapidly to achieving an independent capacity in the use of remote sensing for disaster response. Speakers at the sixteenth session of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF-16; 26-29 January; Bangkok) urged the creation of a space segment to Sentinel Asia, using satellites from south Korea, India and Japan.

The conference was jointly organised and co-sponsored by the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) of Thailand, the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA), the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), APRSAF-16 gathered 310 participants from 26 courtiers and 10 regional and international organisations.

The main theme of the conference was 'Space Applications: Contributions towards Human Safety and Security', so a focus on Sentinel Asia was natural.

Currently, the system depends on technology developed by CSIRO in Australia, and used in the Sentinal Hot Spots (www.sentinel.ga.gov.au) system. This is an online feed that upgrades infrared images acquired from NASA satellites as they pass overhead. Its main function is to give early warning of bush fires.

Sentinel Asia is an embellished version of this portal developed by JAXA for use in Asia. Last week it was being used to monitor floods, oil spills and earthquakes as well as bushfires. However, Sentinel Asia is making increasing use of imagery from South Korea, Japan and India, as well as from Western satellites received and downloaded by GISTDA in Bangkok.

The Asian Disaster Reduction Centre is acting as a point of contact of emergency observation requests. The ADRC was established in Kobe, in Japan in 1998. Its mission is to enhance disaster resilience of the member countries, to build safe communities, and to creat a society where sustainable development is possible.

The meeting last month in Bangkok heard that new steps are in place to improve cooperation between Sentinel Asia and the International Disaster Charter to enhance capability for disaster response in the Asia-Pacific region. Another new initiative announced was the use of the system for monitoring glacial lake outburst floods. This is particularly important in the high country of the Himalayan region and the Hindu Kush.

ASM Newsletter is distributed by e-mail every week. It reports on events in the spatial industry in Asia and events outside the region which will impact on Asia.