TIEOS 2009

Aims of the Forum

Climate change and global warming are perhaps the direst issues currently facing humanity. The data accrued by Earth observation systems and the application thereof greatly helps the world understand the threats to the environment. As a part of the international community's efforts to integrate and promote the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), Taiwan will hold the Integrated Earth Observation System (TIEOS) Forum 2009 this June in Taipei. Through the forum, we hope to spur Taiwan's participation in international cooperation and provide an opportunity to exchange experiences and engage in academic interchange locally. In addition, we aim to introduce the concept of GEOSS domestically and show the potential capabilities of Taiwan's Earth observation systems due to the integration of spatial information resources in Taiwan.

Taiwan is frequently afflicted by natural disasters, such as typhoons and earthquakes. Earth observation, satellite remote sensing and GIS innovative technologies have been widely applied to mitigate natural disasters and monitor the environment. Since 2007, the National Applied Research Laboratories (NARL) has pooled the technical abilities of its seven research laboratories (National Space Organization, National Center for Research on Earthquake Engineering, National Science and Technology Center for Disaster Reduction, etc.) in a project called 3D GIS Taiwan. The joint effort uses high resolution Formosat-2 satellite and digital aerial photo imagery, remote sensing grid, high speed grid computation and networks to create a 3D virtual reality GIS display platform for Taiwan. Although the project's major task is to help the government make sound decisions on mitigating natural disasters, it also supports academic applications. Moreover, the experiences gained in establishing the 3D GIS Taiwan project can be used as a reference for similar applications elsewhere.

TIEOS Forum 2009 aims to provide a platform for international exchange, while further integrating the resources of Taiwan's Earth observation systems. By combining resources through global cooperation, Taiwan hopes to contribute even more to the international community's efforts to accurately predict climate change and upgrade the monitoring of the environment.