In early 2006, Vietnam will commence the construction of the Satellite Image Receiving Station. This will be the first satellite image receiving station in Vietnam. Initially, the station will provide satellite images for free.
This satellite image receiving station will be managed by a remote sensing center and will be part of the “Natural Resource and Environmental Monitoring System in Vietnam” located in Minh Khai Commune, Tu Liem, Hanoi.
According to Mr. Le Minh – Director of the Remote Sensing Center, the procurement of equipment and the construction of the facilities will be completed in 2006. By mid-2007, the station will be put into trial operation.
It is known that with the assistance and funding from the European Space Agency and France in building the “Natural Resource and Environmental Monitoring System of Vietnam”, the station will be equipped with three systems.
These include a receiving station that will utilize images from France and satellite images from Europe.
The types of satellite images collected will be used for map surveying, updating the national map, assessing and managing land use status; supporting forest inventory, crop monitoring, and radar monitoring of land changes due to natural disasters or landslides…
Diagram of the satellite system, image reception station, data processing station, and users
In addition, there will be a national data center constructed (located in Central Vietnam) to store and distribute images as requested by various sectors that need to utilize them.
Notably, 15 application centers will be established to process data and information collected from satellite images to serve specific sectors such as: environmental resources, rural agriculture development, fisheries, disaster relief committees, and the Vietnam Academy of Science…
In the long term, these 15 centers will serve as units providing images and technology solutions to develop applications for provinces across the country, aiding land inventory and monitoring natural resource management for each locality.
The establishment of this satellite image receiving station has been regarded by many experts as a significant breakthrough in the technology of natural resource and environmental monitoring. The station will help Vietnam become more proactive in providing remote sensing images.
Mr. Minh also mentioned that previously, when Vietnam did not have a receiving station, the country had to spend millions of USD annually to purchase images from abroad. Some satellite images cost up to 4,000 USD each, yet the country remained unable to effectively manage disaster warnings and earthquakes… Therefore, the development of remote sensing images will gradually replace aerial images in map updating and the creation of specialized maps.
It is known that initially, the center will provide images for free, and later it will sell images to units that require them (estimated at around 100-200 USD/image). This significantly reduces costs compared to purchasing from abroad while maintaining comparable quality. This is indeed good news for organizations in need of remote sensing images.
