The European Space Agency's GrapeLook service lets growers determine exactly when to water their vineyards, precisely how much water to use and more to ensure an optimal grape harvest.
New Sites Pave Way for Civil Unmanned Aircraft Tests
Competition among states is likely to heat up in response to provisions in the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act that call for six new unmanned aircraft system test sites.
CryoSat Takes on New Role
The European Space Agency’s CryoSat team has cleverly altered the satellite's original ice-monitoring mission to include delivery of valuable near-real-time marine information.
Giant Optical Membrane at the Heart of Ultimate Spy Satellite
To meet national security requirements around the world, it would be optimal to have the instant high-tech, zoom-in views often seen in spy movies, capabilities that currently don't exist”yet.
Satellites Help Manage Africa's Precious Water
With many African countries suffering from a lack of water, new knowledge acquired from satellites is paving the way to sustainable water management practices.
Astrium Prepares to Take on U.S. Firms
Astrium Geo-Information Services will compete with U.S. satellite companies DigitalGlobe and GeoEye when its newly launched Pleiades 1A high-resolution Earth observation satellite becomes operational in early 2012.
Satellite Sensor Provides Ultimate Panoramic View
This image collected Nov. 24, 2011, is the first complete global image from the NPP satellite's Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite, which can image the entire Earth every day with no gaps.
Russian Volcano Hurls Ash Six Miles High
Kizimen, an isolated stratovolcano on Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula, spewed ash nearly 10 kilometers (32,800 feet) into the air in mid-December 2011.
QuickBird Satellite Spots Chinese Carrier at Sea
On Dec. 13, 2011, analysts in the DigitalGlobe Analysis Center confirmed an image of the Varyag, China's first aircraft carrier, in the Yellow Sea on its second sea trial.
Shrubbery on the March Northward in Quebec
The northward expansion of vegetation may not be as dramatic as melting sea ice, but it's another key indicator researchers are watching to better understand global warming.
