You are invited to attend two BARSC Events which will be taking place on the same day:

BARSC Annual General Meeting

1pm, Thursday 9th May 2013

The BARSC AGM for 2013 will be held before the Workshop on Growth.
All members are encouraged to attend – please can you confirm your attendance or send your apologies by email to the Executive Secretary, Gareth Davies (secretary@barsc.org.uk).
If you are unable to attend, it would be useful if you can nominate a proxy who is attending, to help ensure the AGM is quorate.

Nominations for the following posts will be open prior to the AGM:
Chairman, Vice-Chair, Treasurer and Executive Secretary.

In addition, new members of the Executive Committee are always welcome. Nominations are therefore requested and should be made by email, again to the Executive Secretary, as soon as possible.
The Executive Committee usually meets 5-6 times each year, generally in London or the South-East.
Further information about the duties and benefits of serving on the Executive Committee can be obtained from the Executive Secretary.

Workshop on Growth in the downstream Earth Observation sector

2pm, Thursday 9th May 2013

In conjunction with the Space Innovation and Growth Strategy (IGS) Restack team, BARSC has organised a workshop to examine the challenges the downstream Earth Observation sector faces in developing new commercial applications and services. This will also be an excellent forum to brainstorm ideas to stimulate growth.

If there are actions that BARSC members would like UK government or the UK Space Agency to take on, that would help break down barriers to growth for our sector, then this is an ideal opportunity to get our views heard and inserted in the IGS efforts.

The meeting will be attended by representatives of BIS and the UK Space Agency, including Elizabeth Seaman of the UK Space Agency who will provide an update on the National Space Applications Programme (NSAP) and how this will become an enabler for development of new applications and services that exploit space data.

To book your place at the Workshop please email alistair@quarry-one-eleven.com

As the user base for GIS, remote sensing and other mapping technologies increases rapidly, companies must be able to raise the benefits of their products and services above the noise of the competition.

Quarry One Eleven is in business to provide these vital marketing services and as the number of clients on their books has increased, the company has taken a major step in its growth by moving on to the University of Surrey’s business park.

Managing Director, Alistair Maclenan said of the new offices; “Quarry One Eleven is growing and as this happens, it is critical that the standard of the services we provide to our clients remains consistently high. Moving to larger premises is key as we search for the talented people who will ensure this successful growth continues.”

To learn more about the marketing services that Quarry One Eleven can provide, please visit http://www.quarry-one-eleven.com

Under this agreement, KSAT will deliver a complete ground station service to DMCii, including the provision of hardware, and delivery of data to DMCii’s headquarters in the UK. The Svalbard ground station is uniquely placed near the North Pole to provide maximum downlink opportunities from polar-orbiting satellites, such as those operated by DMCii. Whilst an antenna near the equator might get 2 or 3 passes of a satellite over it in a day, antennas at Svalbard get 14 passes a day so satellite data can be downlinked every 90 minutes. A high speed data link between Svalbard and DMCii headquarters will speed up the delivery time of satellite imagery.

Dave Hodgson, Managing Director of DMCii, said:“Timeliness of information is of vital importance to our customers and is a key differentiator of our imagery services. The improved downlink has significantly upgraded data delivery times and has already made 30% more imagery available, further improving capability for change detection applications. This will become more important as the capacity of our satellites to acquire data expands in the near future.”

Rolf Skatteboe, President of KSAT, said: “Kongsberg Satellite Services (KSAT) is pleased with the opportunity to work together with DMCii and deliver an efficient and flexible ground segment for DMC series of satellites; reducing the latency for DMCii customers from the largest ground station in the world for polar orbiting satellites.”

“This is a strong Anglo-Norwegian partnership that we expect to continue with future missions such as the UK’s forthcoming NovaSAR mission. The combination of timely deliveries of Earth Observation data and operational marine monitoring services is important for KSAT marine situational awareness services.”

Every year, North Africa is subjected to locust plagues that threaten to decimate crops and endanger countries’ food security. The satellite imagery is used to assess vegetation conditions, which helps to predict the locations of locust breeding grounds. The imagery, from the UK-DMC2 satellite, is used in conjunction with weather data to help create locust forecasts and focus the application of pesticides to prevent the spread of swarms.

Last year, in a six-month summer campaign to fight the spread of locusts, DMCii acquired monthly images of regions in Southern Algeria, Northern Mali and Northern Niger for ASAL. Now, imagery is being acquired before the summer season starts, to predict as well as monitor the threat of locusts.

Mr Karim Houari, International Cooperation Director of the Algerian Space Agency commented: “The use of satellite imagery has helped us in the past, during the invasion period, to identify and control areas at risk of locust swarms. This year, in terms of locust risk prediction in remission period, we used DMCii data for the ecological assessment of locust breeding areas (biotopes). It is an important contribution for the rationalisation of local response and to reduce damage of this destructive phenomenon.”

Paul Stephens, Director of Sales and Marketing at DMCii, said: “The ability to get timely imagery of large areas is vital because locust swarms can develop quickly and travel about 100km a day. Our 650km wide images allow large areas of land, spanning multiple countries, to be rapidly monitored, helping the local authorities combat locust swarms before they can migrate across the continent.”

The main objectives of the expert meeting are to raise awareness concerning the most recent advances regarding the use of space-based information in early warning systems and disaster preparedness; to identify and systematize areas where space-based information can improve the functionality of existing early warning systems; to identify knowledge management strategies that can facilitate access to and use of space-based information in early warning and preparedness; and to bridge the space and the early warning communities.

Date: 26-27 June 2013
Place: Bonn, Germany

Participants: The expert meeting is expected to bring together a selected number of participants from national, regional, and international public and private organizations representing the space as well as the disaster-risk and emergency response communities. Financial Support: A number of qualified applicants from developing countries, who have expressed the need for financial support, will be offered financial support to attend the expert meeting.

Application Deadlines:
For funded participation: 31 March 2013
For non-funded participation: 15 May 2013

For more information and to apply online, visit the UN-SPIDER Knowledge Portal

Download the flyer (355 KB)

This marks the first time that the Commission has launched such a call for its research and innovation programme. Advisory groups will provide high quality and timely advice for the preparation of the Horizon 2020 calls for project proposals.

Groups will be set up on topics of major concern for European citizens, such as climate change, making renewable energy more affordable, ensuring safe food or coping with the challenges of ageing.

European Research, Innovation and Science Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn said: “Our aim is to reach the broadest range of experts who will help us to deliver innovative ideas, sustainable growth and new jobs. Introducing this transparent and inclusive call for Horizon 2020 means we are reaching out to the entire European research and innovation community. I would in particular like to encourage women and individuals with the right expertise but who have not been involved in the past to show their interest.”

The expert advisory groups will start their work during spring of this year to provide advice in time for the first Horizon 2020 calls, which are expected to be launched by the end of 2013. Individuals and actors wishing to be considered for the first advisory groups have until 6 March 2013 at 5 p.m. Brussels local time to register. The call for expressions of interest will stay open for the lifetime of the Horizon 2020 programme in order to accommodate the renewal of groups at the end of each mandate.

Individuals can express their interest, acting either in a personal capacity, as representatives of collective interest groups or as representatives of organisations.

Details of the criteria on which selection will be based, including the profile of experts, are set out in the call. The full text and guidance on how to register can be found through the following link: http://ec.europa.eu/research/horizon2020/index_en.cfm?pg=h2020-experts

Final Review for the CEOI 5th Open Call held on behalf of the UK Space Agency

The Centre for Earth Observation Instrumentation (CEOI) is pleased to invite you to its Technology Projects Review Day, held on behalf of the UK Space Agency, when 19 CEOI funded projects will be presented. These projects are nearing completion and cover a broad range of technologies, instruments and missions important for future Earth observation from space.

Held at BMA House in London near Euston/Kings Cross on Wednesday 20th March, this event will provide an overview of the 19 remote sensing technology projects and enable insights into how some of these technology areas may offer potential opportunities for Earth observation, other space missions and terrestrial applications.

The project technologies are relevant to a wide-range of industries, including defence, security, medical, energy, analytical instrumentation, environment, agriculture, robotics. They include

• passive microwave instrument and technology development
• manufacturing techniques for lightweight optical mirrors
• innovative spectrometers for measuring trace gases and air quality
• low-cost fire monitoring from space
• high quality calibration of radiometers
• space-based radar technologies and missions

The format for this one day event will include presentations on all the projects. The full programme can be downloaded via the link below.

For further information and to reserve a place, please go to the CEOI website

Therefore, the UK Space Agency would like to launch a National Space Applications Programme (NSAP), and is looking for technical professional support for the development of this new programme.

To learn more about this opportuntiy and for details on how to apply, please visit:
The Business Link Contracts Finder

The CEOI programme supports mainstream projects and smaller ‘seedcorn’ projects, both selected through Open Calls to the community. Created in 2007 and jointly funded by the UK Space Agency and industry, the CEOI has a vision to develop and strengthen UK expertise and capabilities in EO. It also works to position the UK to win leading roles in future international space programmes.

As well as affording an overview of current UK Space policy, future technology challenges and collaborative opportunities, there were technology presentations covering:

• Remote sensing techniques for urban air quality monitoring
• The study of a future geosynchronous radar mission
• Lightweight optics, bonded mirror structures
• Innovative satellite on-board data handling techniques
• Infrared sensors with avalanche gain for radical improvement in sensitivity in space borne instruments
• Mid-infrared laser heterodyne systems – from EO to security and defence

Although the technical drive has been to produce instruments for space, in many cases the resulting technologies have non-space applications. A number of sectors which could be beneficiaries of such technologies include healthcare, defence and security, analytical instrumentation, marine industries and environmental. This was reflected in the mix of industrial delegates, representing numerous technology areas and industries.

The showcase element of the event began at lunch time and included around a dozen exhibitors. Presentations and further information about the CEOI and its technologies can be found via the following Link

The event is taking place at the Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Innovation, registration is at 9.00am.

For more information please click on the Event Brochure

The event is free so early booking is advised.