main page newsnewsfederal space agency joined formally the international charter on space and major disasters

Federal Space Agency joined formally the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters. / April 24, 2013 /

On 16-19 April 2013 in Berlin (Germany), the 29th Board and Executive Secretariat Meeting of the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters was held wherein the ROSCOSMOS formally made the request to join the Charter to Board’s representatives. Thus, the Federal Space Agency becomes the Charter’s formal member.

The International Charter «Space and Major Disasters» was initiated in 1999 in accordance with the decision made by the International Conference UNISPACE III held in Vienna. The Charter is aimed at assisting those affected by emergencies caused by major disasters by providing free of charge the authorized users which are typically disaster management authorities with space-based data and information relief efforts. The Charter collaborates actively with different international organizations in coordination and improvement of cooperation in using satellite data to mitigate the effects of emergencies on human life and property (UNSPIDER, UNOOSA, AsiaSentinel).

The Charter units now 14 members including ESA, CNES, DLR, ISRO, CSA, CNSA, CONAE, and JAXA, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Organization (NOAA), US Geological Survey (USGS), DMC Imaging Ltd and other organizations.

The activities aimed at the ROSCOSMOS accession to the Charter were initiated in 2012 after the KANOPUS-V spacecraft launch. By now the special-purpose hard- and software complex dedicated for interaction with the Charter has been deployed by the Research Center for Earth Operative Monitoring (JSC Russian Space Systems) which is an Operator of the Russian remote sensing space systems in concert with the EMERCOM of Russia.

On 18 April, the ROSCOSMOS has joined the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters.

According to the Charter’ documents, the ROSCOSMOS became its 15th member and the Ministry of the Russian Federation for Civil Defense, Emergencies and Elimination of Consequences of Natural Disasters — the ROSCOSMOS’s Authorized User.

The following documents for a final ROSCOSMOS accession to the Charter were prepared and approved by the Charter:
— Implementing Plan relevant to the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters;
— The Federal Space Agency policy as to the remote sensing data delivery;
— List of the Russian remote sensing space systems which data will be delivered to foreign members of the Charter.

The participation of the Russian Federation in the Charter’s activity will improve considerably the capabilities of the domestic remote sensing satellite constellation in case of emergencies by using more than forty foreign remote sensing spacecraft for space imagery. The expansion of the domestic remote sensing satellite constellation scheduled for this year will allow the ROSCOSMOS’s contribution to the Charter to be increased in the future.

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