32 Nations Sharing Satellite Imagery as Part of MGCP Network

摘要

The growing number of radar and optical Earth observation satellites should make it easier for users to collect timely imagery, regularly refreshed, from anywhere in the world. But that is not the case, according to U.S., Canadian and European officials. A lack of common technical standards, imagery overlaps and the reluctance to share some commercial data all make it difficult to assemble up-to-date maps of a given crisis area in short order. Enter the Multinational Geospatial Co-production Program (MGCP), which started a decade ago and now counts 32 member nations, each making contributions to a central database in return for being able to access the data.