Satellite images captured the amazing architecture of the city of Dubai and Abu Dhabi, UAE (United Arab Emirates). Abundant in oil, architecture, and global tourism, these cities are one of the world’s most attractive and rapidly developing leisure destinations that offers state of the art modern architecture and facilities offering the highest in comfort and luxury for the traveler or business professional.

GeoEye-1 Satellite Image of the Burj Khalifa, Dubai, UAE

also known as Burj Dubai – Tallest Building in the World

Courtesy of GeoEye

Dubai

Having existed for more then 150 years, Dubai was created with the formation of the United Arab Emirates in 1971. Over the years Dubai’s sophisticated buildings and structures have amazed the world as a popular destination business hub and highlighted human rights issues concerning its largely foreign workforce.

The Jebel Ali free zone, comprising the Jebel Ali port (reputedly the world’s largest man made port) was established in 1979, which provided foreign companies unrestricted import of labor and export capital. This allowed the city to develop the Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City and Dubai Maritime City.

IKONOS Satellite Image of Burj Al Arab Hotel, Dubai, UAE

Courtesy of GeoEye

The recent completion of the construction of Burj Al Arab, the world’s tallest freestanding hotel (image above), as well as the creation of new residential developments, were used to market Dubai for purposes of tourism.

Photos of Dubai’s Current and Proposed Architecture

IKONOS Satellite Images of Palm Jumeirah Construction Animation, Dubai, UAE

Click on link or satellite image to view animation

Satellite Image Courtesy of Space Imaging Middle East

Along the coast of Dubai are human-made islands. The construction process for the Palm Islands involved dredging sand from the bottom of the Persian Gulf and then spraying the sand over the areas to create the desired shapes. Satellite imaging technology has played a role in the construction of these islands, as the sand-spraying ships rely on Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite readings to locate their targets.

For more information on The Palm Islands visit here.

ASTER Satellite Image of Palm Jebel Ali, Palm Jumeirah

and The World Islands

Courtesy of NASA/Japanese Space Team

Dubai’s population has doubled every ten years since 1971. The city has seen an increase in private real estate investments in recreating Dubai’s skyline with such projects as The Palm Islands and Burj Khalifa.

Dubai Strategic Plan for 2015

Discovery Channel Videos on Building Dubai – The Impossible City

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6

Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi the 2nd largest city is the capital of the United Arab Emirates and home for the Emirati Royal Family. Abu Dhabi also hosts many oil companies and has grown to become a cosmopolitan metropolis which has progressively grown over the years. While not as cosmopolitan or as sophisticated as Dubai, Abu Dhabi is a modern city with broad boulevards, tall office and apartment buildings, and busy shops. At present, Abu Dhabi boasts the worlds highest absolute and per-capita level of sovereign wealth funds.

GeoEye-1 Satellite Image of Ferrari World on Yas Island

Abu Dhabi, UAE

Courtesy of GeoEye

Satellite image above of Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, located on Yas Island, will open in 2010 and is set to be the world's largest indoor theme park. The 150-foot tall red steel roof was designed as the classic body shell of a Ferrari GT car and includes a 200-foot Ferrari logo. The park will also include a Formula One spec race track that will host the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and other racing events. GeoEye-1 .50-meter resolution collected this image on October 2009.

About Satellite Imaging Corporation:

Satellite Imaging Corporation (SIC), a privately held technology company that provides high resolution satellite imagery from satellite sensors such as GeoEye-1, WorldView-2 Worldview-1, QuickBird, IKONOS, SPOT-5 and other remote sensing products for analysis and mapping applications such as Geographic Information System (GIS).

The company specializes in mono and stereo satellite imaging technology producing seamless orthorectified satellite imaging mosaics DEM's and 3D terrain models for many industries using CAD and GIS applications including engineering and construction, homeland security, defense, intelligence and disaster response using high and medium resolution mono and stereo satellite image data.

For more information contact:

Satellite Imaging Corporation
12777 Jones Road, Suite 370
Houston, Texas 77070-4671
U.S.A.

Toll Free (866) 283-2952 (US and Canada only)
Tel: (1) 832-237-2900
Fax: (1) 832-237-2910
Website: www.satimagingcorp.com

Satellite Images captured the damage of the 8.8 magnitude earthquake and tsunami that hit Chile on February 27th. The earthquake was so sudden, people were shocked when it occurred. The intensity of the quake was so devastating that it caused blackouts in some areas of Santiago, Chile's capital city.

QuickBird Satellite Image (0.6m) – Pre Earthquake/Tsunami

Chile – Coastline

Image Credit: DigitalGlobe

QuickBird Satellite Image (0.6m) – Post Earthquake/Tsunami

Chile – Coastline

Image Credit: DigitalGlobe

Reports of hundreds of bodies have been found and possibly more will be discovered. Police and military troops are posted on street corners to prevent looting and chaos. Many of the city’s 500,000 inhabitants are short of food, water and electricity was cut off.

Military helicopters carrying relief supplies landed Tuesday in the coastal town of Concepcion, which was in ruins following the 8.8 magnitude quake and tsunami.?? A makeshift morgue was established in a gymnasium, where bodies lay on the floor for identification and the names of the dead were posted outside.

Video of Chaos After Earthquake

Video Earthquake Aftershocks

Earthquake Altered Earth’s Axis

The earthquake was so powerful that it likely shifted Earth’s axis and shortened the length of a day, NASA announced Monday.

By speeding up Earth’s rotation, the magnitude 8.8 earthquake shortened an Earth day by 1.26 millionths of a second, according to new computer-model calculations by geophysicist Richard Gross of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California.

Gross also estimates that the earthquake shifted Earth’s figure axis by about three inches (eight centimeters).

About Satellite Imaging Corporation:

Satellite Imaging Corporation (SIC), a privately held technology company that provides high resolution satellite imagery from satellite sensors such as GeoEye-1, WorldView-2 Worldview-1, QuickBird, IKONOS, SPOT-5 and other remote sensing products for analysis and mapping applications such as Geographic Information System (GIS).

The company specializes in mono and stereo satellite imaging technology producing seamless orthorectified satellite imaging mosaics DEM's and 3D terrain models for many industries using CAD and GIS applications including engineering and construction, homeland security, defense, intelligence and disaster response using high and medium resolution mono and stereo satellite image data.

For more information contact:

Satellite Imaging Corporation
12777 Jones Road, Suite 370
Houston, Texas 77070-4671
U.S.A.

Toll Free (866) 283-2952 (US and Canada only)
Tel: (1) 832-237-2900
Fax: (1) 832-237-2910
Website: www.satimagingcorp.com

Satellite images of Whistler Olympic Park and Cypress Mountain in Canada hosting the 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games a major international multi-sport event held on February 12'28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia. It is consistently ranked the number one mountain resort in North America. Whistler has over 8,000 acres, the highest peak-to-peak gondola and the longest unsupported lift in the world.

GoeEye-1 satellite image (0.5 meter resolution) below features Cypress Mountain, located in Cypress Provincial Park, adjacent to the District of West Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Freestyle skiing and snowboard events are held here. The image was taken by the GeoEye-1 satellite from 423 miles in space on Feb. 19, 2010 as it moved from north to south over Canada at a speed of four miles per second. (Image credit: GeoEye)

This is a Worldview-2 satellite image (0.5 meter resolution) below of Cypress Mountain, Olympics Venue in Vancouver, Canada for moguls, aerials and snowboarding competitions.?? (Image credit: DigitalGlobe).

The satellite image below of Whistler Olympic Park was taken by GeoEye's IKONOS satellite (1 meter resolution) from 423 miles in space on Jan. 16, 2010 at 10:35 a.m. (local) time as it moved from north to south over Canada at a speed of four miles per second. Nordic and sliding events are held here. (Image credit: GeoEye)

QuickBird Satellite Image (0.6 meter resolution) below of Whistler Olympic Park Vancouver, British Columbia – Slide Center. (Image Credit: DigitalGlobe)

Whistler is a resort town in the southern Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in the province of British Columbia, Canada, approximately 125 kilometres (78 mi) north of Vancouver.

All alpine skiing events are being held on Whistler Mountain and sliding events (bobsleigh, luge and skeleton) are being held on Blackcomb Mountain. Cypress Mountain (located in Cypress Provincial Park in West Vancouver) is hosting the 2010 freestyle skiing (aerials, moguls, and ski cross), and all 2010 snowboard events (half-pipe, parallel giant slalom, snowboard cross).

Over two million people visit Whistler annually, primarily for alpine skiing and mountain biking at Whistler-Blackcomb. Its pedestrian village has won numerous design awards and Whistler has been voted among the top destinations in North America by major ski magazines since the mid-1990s.

About Satellite Imaging Corporation:

Satellite Imaging Corporation (SIC), a privately held technology company that provides high resolution satellite imagery from satellite sensors such as GeoEye-1, WorldView-2 Worldview-1, QuickBird, IKONOS, SPOT-5 and other remote sensing products for analysis and mapping applications such as Geographic Information System (GIS).

The company specializes in mono and stereo satellite imaging technology producing seamless orthorectified satellite imaging mosaics DEM's and 3D terrain models for many industries using CAD and GIS applications including engineering and construction, homeland security, defense, intelligence and disaster response using high and medium resolution mono and stereo satellite image data.

For more information contact:

Satellite Imaging Corporation
12777 Jones Road, Suite 370
Houston, Texas 77070-4671
U.S.A.

Toll Free (866) 283-2952 (US and Canada only)
Tel: (1) 832-237-2900
Fax: (1) 832-237-2910
Website: www.satimagingcorp.com

ESA's CryoSat the most sophisticated satellite ever to investigate the Earth's ice fields and map ice thickness over water and land was scheduled to launch February 25, 2010 at 14:57 CET (13:57 UTC) has been delayed until further notice. The launcher is operated by the international space company Kosmotras. Its primary objective is to test the prediction that Arctic sea ice is thinning due to global warming.

ESA's CryoSat

Image Credit: ESA

The CryoSat satellite sensor whose name comes from the Greek kruos meaning icy cold ' carries the first all-weather microwave radar altimeter. The instrument has been optimized for determining changes in the thickness of both floating sea ice, which can be up to several meters, and polar land ice sheets, which in Antarctica can be up to five kilometers. The mission will deliver data on the rate of change of the ice thickness accurate to within one centimeter.

Data from CryoSat will lead to a better understanding of the dynamics of ice mass, provide the scientific community with valuable information on this variable and contribute to climate change studies.

CryoSat will also survey the surface of continental ice sheets to detect small elevation changes. CryoSat's high spatial resolution radar altimeter is capable of operating in a number of modes, optimized for measurement over different surfaces.

For some years, satellites such as Envisat, ASTER and Landsat 7 +ETM have been mapping the extent of ice cover. However, in order to understand how climate change is affecting these sensitive regions, there is an urgent need to determine how the thickness of the ice is changing.

Watch Video: Short Tour of the Cryosphere

CryoSat: ESA's ice mission – An Overview

Satellite image data is expected to contribute to a wide array of global change-related application areas for vegetation and ecosystem dynamics, hazard monitoring, geology and soil analysis, land surface climatology, hydrology, land cover change, and the generation of orthorectified digital elevation models (DEMs).

In addition to changes in the atmosphere’s composition, changes in the land surface can have important effects on climate. For example, land change can affect temperature by changing how much solar radiation the land reflects and absorbs. Processes such as deforestation, reforestation, desertification and urbanization often contribute to changes (including temperature, wind and precipitation) in the places they occur. These effects may be significant regionally, but reduced when averaged over the entire globe.

With regard to studies about the Earth’s cryosphere, high resolution satellite sensors such as the GeoEye-1 at 0.41m resolution, WorldView-2 at 0.46m, Worldview-1, QuickBird, and IKONOS, these sensors will be an important tool for tracking changes in the Arctic and elsewhere.

About Satellite Imaging Corporation:

Satellite Imaging Corporation (SIC), a privately held technology company that provides high resolution satellite imagery from satellite sensors such as GeoEye-1, WorldView-2 Worldview-1, QuickBird, IKONOS, SPOT-5 and other remote sensing products for analysis and mapping applications such as Geographic Information System (GIS).

The company specializes in mono and stereo satellite imaging technology producing seamless orthorectified satellite imaging mosaics DEM's and 3D terrain models for many industries using CAD and GIS applications including engineering and construction, homeland security, defense, intelligence and disaster response using high and medium resolution mono and stereo satellite image data.

For more information contact:

Satellite Imaging Corporation
12777 Jones Road, Suite 370
Houston, Texas 77070-4671
U.S.A.

Toll Free (866) 283-2952 (US and Canada only)
Tel: (1) 832-237-2900
Fax: (1) 832-237-2910
Website: www.satimagingcorp.com

Satellite image of Machu Picchu before the heavy rains and mudslides that plagued the area on January 26, 2010 stranding thousands of tourists and leaving 20 people dead. At least 250 homes and bridges and parts of several highways were severely affected as fast moving water and fallen rock covered the roads.

IKONOS Satellite Image of Machu Picchu, Peru

Copyright ?? 2010 GeoEye. All Rights Reserved.

Helicopters were being sent to the scene to evacuate some 2,000 people. Tourists were trapped at the World Heritage site in the eastern Peruvian jungle, while two others were killed in separate mudslides. Other deaths were reported over the weekend and another person died when a hillside collapsed due to a landslide.

Watch Video of Floods

Remote Sensing for Mudslides and Flooding Disasters

Remote sensing techniques greatly aid in the investigations of mudslides (also known as mudflows) and landslides, on both a local and regional scale. Remote sensing offers an additional tool from which we can extract information about mudflow and landslide causes and occurrences. Most importantly, they greatly aid in the prediction of future occurrences, which is very important to those who reside in areas surrounded by unstable slopes.

Mudflows and landslides in around the world pose threats to settlements and structures, often result in catastrophic damage to highways, railways, waterways, and pipelines.

To determine where protective measures are necessary, scientists and technicians produce landslide inventory and risk assessment maps for many areas around the world. Mudflows and landslides unfortunately, do not display a clear relationship between magnitude and frequency as do earthquakes and floods. Landslide studies are challenging to scientists, due to the difficulty to represent landslide hazards in quantitative terms over large areas.

Analysis and Prediction of Landslides in GIS (Geographic Information Systems)

Machu Picchu, Peru

Machu Picchu is one of the most popular destinations in Peru as it welcomes 400,000 visitors per year. Voted as one of the “Seven Wonders in the World”?? in 2007, is one of the most famous Incan cities in the world. Sun alignments are found throughout Machu Picchu, many features, including the Sacred Plaza, The Temple of Three Windows and The Intihuatana platform, align with the summer solstice azimuth of 65-245 degrees. Scientists believe these alignments were primary considerations in the construction of the shrines. A shaft of light, shining through an east-facing window, reportedly illuminates The Torreon, or Temple of the Sun, during the summer solstice. The city was built between 1460 and 1470 AD at an altitude of 8,000 feet. Satellite Image: Copyright ?? 2008 GeoEye. All Rights Reserved.

About Satellite Imaging Corporation:

Satellite Imaging Corporation (SIC), a privately held technology company that provides high resolution satellite imagery from satellite sensors such as GeoEye-1, WorldView-2 Worldview-1, QuickBird, IKONOS, SPOT-5 and other remote sensing products for analysis and mapping applications such as Geographic Information System (GIS).

The company specializes in mono and stereo satellite imaging technology producing seamless orthorectified satellite imaging mosaics DEM's and 3D terrain models for many industries using CAD and GIS applications including engineering and construction, homeland security, defense, intelligence and disaster response using high and medium resolution mono and stereo satellite image data.

For more information contact:

Satellite Imaging Corporation
12777 Jones Road, Suite 370
Houston, Texas 77070-4671
U.S.A.

Toll Free (866) 283-2952 (US and Canada only)
Tel: (1) 832-237-2900
Fax: (1) 832-237-2910
Website: www.satimagingcorp.com

GeoEye-1 satellite sensor captured a high resolution satellite image of the most devastating earthquake of the century that hit Port-au-Prince, Haiti on Tuesday January 12th. The quake killing around 170,000 people possibly more and leaving one million homeless, without?? food or water as a result of a 7.0-magnitude earthquake.

Destruction to buildings, hospitals and roads left Haitians with a shortage on medical supplies and doctors for the injured and no equipment to move the rubble and debris. With many dead and not knowing what to do, people are having to pile bodies in the streets and leaving many with no relief or hope.

GeoEye-1 Satellite Image – Port-au-Prince, Haiti

Post Earthquake – January 13, 2010

GeoEye-1 satellite image above was taken from 423 miles in space at 10:27 am EST on Jan. 13, 2010 as it moved from north to south over the Caribbean at a speed of four miles per second. Ground resolution is half meter (19 inches).

To view a YouTube video of more Before and After satellite images go here.

The 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck shortly before 5 p.m. Tuesday, centered about 10 miles (15 kilometers) southwest of Port-au-Prince, the U.S. Geological Survey reported. It could be felt strongly in eastern Cuba, more than 200 miles away due to the earthquake being shallow meaning that the energy that was released is very close to the surface. The earthquake’s power matched that of several nuclear bombs and about 3 million people were affected by the quake.

Haiti sits on a large fault that has caused catastrophic quakes in the past, but this one was described as among the most powerful to hit the region.

IKONOS (0.8 m) Satellite Image – President’s Palace (2008)

Before earthquake – Port-au-Prince, Haiti

GeoEye-1 Satellite Image – President’s Palace (2010)

After earthquake – Port-au-Prince, Haiti

IKONOS (0.8 m) Satellite Image – (2008)

Before earthquake – Port-au-Prince, Haiti

GeoEye-1 Satellite Image – (2010)

After earthquake – Port-au-Prince, Haiti

Damage and Recovery Assessments

The above satellite images show before and after the earthquake causing widespread destruction to communities, buildings and roads. Satellite imagery is used to get ground and air assessments of the damage to help rescue and relief workers to focus on their efforts to respond to emergencies and natural hazards.

Satellite images and aerial photography greatly aids rescue efforts?? for emergency personnel to access damage from earthquakes and allowing state and government agencies the ability to view the damage from multiple vantage points. The spatial resolution of an image determines the ability to view individual features such as buildings and bridges. It also affects the ability to monitor and assess damage conditions. Resolution of approximately 10 meters or smaller are necessary to discern the presence and location of individual buildings, while high resolution imagery of one meter or less can distinguish damage conditions of individual buildings, roads and structures.

What Caused the Earthquake

Topography Along the Enriquillo-Plaintain Garden Fault, Haiti

More Photos

Mass Graves in Haiti

About Satellite Imaging Corporation:

Satellite Imaging Corporation (SIC), a privately held technology company that provides high resolution satellite imagery from satellite sensors such as GeoEye-1, WorldView-2 Worldview-1, QuickBird, IKONOS, SPOT-5 and other remote sensing products for analysis and mapping applications such as Geographic Information System (GIS).

The company specializes in mono and stereo satellite imaging technology producing seamless orthorectified satellite imaging mosaics DEM's and 3D terrain models for many industries using CAD and GIS applications including engineering and construction, homeland security, defense, intelligence and disaster response using high and medium resolution mono and stereo satellite image data.

For more information contact:

Satellite Imaging Corporation
12777 Jones Road, Suite 370
Houston, Texas 77070-4671
U.S.A.

Toll Free (866) 283-2952 (US and Canada only)
Tel: (1) 832-237-2900
Fax: (1) 832-237-2910
Website: www.satimagingcorp.com

Satellite image view of Mount Nyamulagira volcano that erupted earlier this month in Eastern Congo threatening villagers and Virunga National Park, home to rare chimpanzees and critically endangered mountain gorillas.

Landsat 7 Satellite Image of Virunga National Parks

Mount Nyamulagira

Nyamulagira (also known as Nyamuragira) is one of Africa's most active volcanoes, if not the most active that last erupted in 2006. About 25 kilometers north of Lake Kivu, and located to the northwest of Nyiragongo Volcano, it contrasts with its tall, steep-sided neighbor. Nyamulagira is relatively short. It is a shield volcano with gentle slopes. Shield volcanoes derive their name from their resemblance to metal shields warriors once used. Major eruptions at Nyamulagira have occurred recently enough to change the volcano caldera's structure since the early 20th century.

More on Virunga National Parks including Satellite Images

To view Thermal Maps of Volcano eruption go here

Watch Video of Eruption

Latest News (January 25, 2010) on Nyamulagira

Virunga National Park contains within 790,000 hectares the greatest diversity of habitats of any park in Africa, from steppes, savannas and lava plains, swamps, lowland and forests to volcanoes. Thousands of hippopotamuses and elephants live in the park’s rivers and its mountains are a critical area for the survival of the mountain and lowland gorillas.

3D Flythrough Movie – Visoke Volcano

1m Stereo IKONOS Satellite Image Data and 5m DTM

The Virunga National Park lies from the Virunga Mountains to the Rwenzori Mountains in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo which borders the Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda and Rwenzori Mountains National Park in Uganda. Covering 7,800 Km2 it was established in 1925 as Africa’s first national park and classified as a World Heritage Site in 1979. It has become well known for its, poaching and civil wars in the region that have seriously damaged its wildlife population.

Remote Sensing for Natural Disasters

Satellite imagery and aerial photography incorporated with geographic information systems (GIS), can give researchers and emergency officials a wealth of information for assessment, analysis and monitoring of natural disasters such as volcano damage from small to large regions around the globe.

Volcanic studies can be organized into three phases:

1. Detection and classification

2. Monitoring activity of existing volcanoes

3. Analysis of eruption in spatial distribution and temporal distribution

Remote Sensing gives state and government agencies the ability to view the damage from multiple vantage points. The spatial resolution of an image determines the ability to view individual features such as morphological features, suitable for eruption warning and for detecting plumes and lava flows. It also affects the ability to monitor and assess damage conditions, and depends on the nature of the hazard itself.

About Satellite Imaging Corporation:

Satellite Imaging Corporation (SIC), a privately held technology company that provides high resolution satellite imagery from satellite sensors such as GeoEye-1, WorldView-2 Worldview-1, QuickBird, IKONOS, SPOT-5 and other remote sensing products for analysis and mapping applications such as Geographic Information System (GIS).

The company specializes in mono and stereo satellite imaging technology producing seamless orthorectified satellite imaging mosaics DEM's and 3D terrain models for many industries using CAD and GIS applications including engineering and construction, homeland security, defense, intelligence and disaster response using high and medium resolution mono and stereo satellite image data.

For more information contact:

Satellite Imaging Corporation
12777 Jones Road, Suite 370
Houston, Texas 77070-4671
U.S.A.

Toll Free (866) 283-2952 (US and Canada only)
Tel: (1) 832-237-2900
Fax: (1) 832-237-2910
Website: www.satimagingcorp.com

These images are made possible by cutting edge satellite imaging technology. By using the latest remote sensing technology, we are able to display these sites from around the world.

The satellite images below of the world’s most famous memorials, tombs and mausoleums were captured by high resolution commercial satellite sensors. These large and impressive structures were created for deceased leaders or other person(s) of importance. Most of these structures date back thousands of years, and many memorials, tombs and mausoleum sites still stand today.

Click on a thumbnail to enlarge the image. Please beware that these high resolution images may require some time to download, depending on your connection speed.

Great Pyramids of Giza, El Giza, Egypt

Giza Pyramids – QuickBird, DigitalGlobe

The Giza Pyramids were constructed around 2500 BC as monumental tombs. The largest and oldest pyramid was originally over 480 feet high and is made of 5.7 million tons of limestone. It is believed the pyramid was built as a tomb for fourth dynasty Egyptian Pharaoh Khufu (Cheops in Greek) and constructed over a 20 year period concluding around 2540 BC. The Great Pyramid was the tallest man-made structure in the world for over 3,800 years. Satellite Images: Copyright ?? 2009 DigitalGlobe. All Rights Reserved.

More on Great Pyramids of Giza

Taj Mahal, New Delhi, India

Taj Mahal – IKONOS, GeoEye

Located at the city of Agra in the State of Uttar Pradesh, the Taj Mahal is one of the most beautiful masterpieces of architecture in the world a style that combines elements of Persian, Turkish, Indian, and Islamic architectural styles. While the white domed marble mausoleum is the most familiar part of the monument, the Taj Mahal is actually an integrated complex of structures. Taj Mahal was built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his favorite wife. Satellite Image: Copyright ?? 2009 GeoEye. All Rights Reserved.

More on Taj Mahal Mausoleum

First Emperor of the Qin Dynasty – Terracotta Warriors and Horses, Xi’an, Shaanxi province, China

Xi’an, Shaanxi province, China – JAXA

Terracotta Warriors and Horses – QuickBird, DigitalGlobe

The Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor (Qin Shi Huang, 259 BC to 210 BC), who established the first unified dynasty in China in 221 BC, is the grey-green pyramid in the top image. The base of the pyramid is 375m in both east-west and north-south directions. East of the mausoleum, you can see the semi-cylindrical roof of No. 1 Pit of the Museum of Qin Terra-Cotta Warriors and Horses, where thousands of standing terra-cotta figures of life-sized soldiers and horses were excavated. Satellite Image: Copyright ?? 2009 JAXA/
Digital Globe. All Rights Reserved.

More on First Emperor of the Qin Dynasty

The Pantheon Mausoleum, Rome, Italy

Pantheon Mausoleum – GeoEye-1, GeoEye

The Pantheon meaning “Every god” is a building in Rome, built by Marcus Agrippa as a temple to all the gods of Ancient Rome, and rebuilt by Emperor Hadrian in about 126 AD. A near-contemporary writer, Cassius Dio, speculates that the name comes from the statues of many gods placed around the building, or from the resemblance of the dome to the heavens. Since the French Revolution, when the church of Sainte-Genevi??ve, Paris, was deconsecrated and turned into a secular monument, the Panth??on, the generic term pantheon may be applied to any building in which illustrious dead are honored or buried. Satellite Image: Copyright ?? 2009 GeoEye. All Rights Reserved.

More on The Pantheon

St. Peter Basilica, Vatican City, Rome, Italy

St. Basilica Church – IKONOS, GeoEye

Old St. Peter’s Basilica was the fourth-century church begun by the Emperor Constantine between 326 and 333 AD. This church had been built over the small shrine believed to mark the burial place of St. Peter. It contained a very large number of burials and memorials, including those of most of the popes from St. Peter to the 15th century. Copyright ?? 2009 GeoEye. All Rights Reserved.

More on St. Peter Basilica

Lenin's Mausoleum, Red Square, Russia

Lenin’s Mausoleum – QuickBird, DigitalGlobe

Lenin’s Mausoleum, also known as Lenin’s Tomb, situated in Red Square in Moscow, is the mausoleum that serves as the final resting place of Vladimir Lenin. His embalmed body has been on public display there since the year he died in 1924 (with rare exceptions in wartime). Aleksey Shchusev’s diminutive but monumental granite structure incorporates some elements from ancient mausoleums, such as the Step Pyramid and the Tomb of Cyrus the Great. Satellite Image: Copyright ?? 2009 DigitalGlobe. All Rights Reserved.

More on Lenin’s Tomb

Lincoln's Memorial, Washington DC, U.S.A.

Lincoln Memorial – GoeEye-1, GeoEye

American memorial built to honor the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln.The building is in the form of a Greek Doric temple and contains a large seated sculpture of Abraham Lincoln and inscriptions of two well-known speeches by Lincoln. Satellite Image: Copyright ?? 2009 GeoEye. All Rights Reserved.

More on Lincoln’s Memorial

Thomas Jefferson Memorial, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA

Monticello House – GoeEye-1, GoeEye

Dedicated to Thomas Jefferson, an American Founding Father and the third president of the United States. The Monticello House a neoclassical building was designed by John Russell Pope. It was built by Philadelphia contractor Tyler Nichols. Construction began in 1939, the building was completed in 1943, and the bronze statue of Jefferson was added in 1947. When completed, the memorial occupied one of the last significant sites left in the city. Copyright ?? 2009 GeoEye. All Rights Reserved.

More on Thomas Jefferson Memorial

Washington Memorial, Washington DC, USA

Washington Monument – GeoEye-1, GeoEye

The Washington Monument is the most prominent structure in Washington, D.C. and one of the city’s early attractions. It was built in honor of George Washington, who led the country to independence and then became its first President. The Monument is shaped like an Egyptian obelisk, stands 555' 5 1/8' tall, and offers views in excess of thirty miles. It was finished on December 6, 1884. Satellite Image Copyright ?? 2009 GeoEye. All Rights Reserved.

More on Washington Monument

USS Arizona Memorial, Pearl Harbor, O’ahu, Hawaii

USS Arizona – IKONOS, GeoEye

The resting place of 1,102 of the 1,177 sailors killed on the USS Arizona during the Attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 by Japanese imperial forces and commemorates the events of that day. The attack on Pearl Harbor and the island of O’ahu was the action that led to United States involvement in World War II. Satellite Image Copyright ?? 2009 GeoEye. All Rights Reserved.

More on USS Arizona Memorial

Twin Towers Memorial, World Trade Center, Manhattan, New York

Twin Towers Memorial – QuickBird, DigitalGlobe

Proposed Memorial completion around 2011 will be?? built to remember and honor the nearly three thousand people who died in the horrific attacks of February 26, 1993, and September 11, 2001. The Memorial will consist of two massive pools set within the footprints of the Twin Towers with the largest manmade waterfalls in the country cascading down their sides. They will be a powerful reminder of the Twin Towers and of the unprecedented loss of life from an attack on our soil.

The names of the nearly 3,000 individuals who were killed in the September 11 attacks in New York City, Pennsylvania, and at the Pentagon, and the February 1993 World Trade Center bombing will be inscribed around the edges of the Memorial pools. Satellite Image Copyright ?? 2009 DigitalGlobe. All Rights Reserved.

More on the Twin Towers Memorial

The Pentagon Memorial, Arlington, Virgina, USA

Pentagon Memorial – IKONOS, GeoEye

An outdoor memorial dedicated to the 184 people killed in the building and on American Airlines Flight 77 in the September 11, 2001 attacks (not counting the hijackers aboard the plane). The memorial opened to the public on September 11, 2008. Satellite Image Copyright ?? 2009 GeoEye. All Rights Reserved.

More on Pentagon Memorial

More Famous Mausoleums, Memorials, Tombs and Fascinating Tombs of interest.

Remote Sensing Technology

Remote Sensing and geographic information systems (GIS) have become increasingly important tools for researchers and scientists as these systems link information to precisely calibrated physical locations, and integrate information drawn from multiple sources. The usefulness of satellite images and aerial photographs for identifying and analyzing sites such as the above was recognized from the early days of aviation and the imagery is now available from an array of aircraft and high resolution satellite borne sensors and LIDAR that provide even greater potential for investigating or researching these sites of importance.

Satellite images has been used by government, commercial, industrial, civilian, and educational communities throughout the world. The data is used to support a wide range of applications in such areas as archaeology, agriculture, forestry, mining, engineering, construction, and creating 3D dimensional models (DEMs) and fly throughs.

About Satellite Imaging Corporation:

Satellite Imaging Corporation (SIC), a privately held technology company that provides high resolution satellite imagery from satellite sensors such as GeoEye-1, WorldView-2 Worldview-1, QuickBird, IKONOS, SPOT-5 and other remote sensing products for analysis and mapping applications such as Geographic Information System (GIS).

The company specializes in mono and stereo satellite imaging technology producing seamless orthorectified satellite imaging mosaics DEM's and 3D terrain models for many industries using CAD and GIS applications using high and medium resolution mono and stereo satellite image data.

For more information contact:

Satellite Imaging Corporation
12777 Jones Road, Suite 370
Houston, Texas 77070-4671
U.S.A.

Toll Free (866) 283-2952 (US and Canada only)
Tel: (1) 832-237-2900
Fax: (1) 832-237-2910
Website: www.satimagingcorp.com

Small Business Commerce Association's Award Honors the Achievement

SAN FRANSICO, November 7, 2009, Satellite Imaging Corporation has been selected for the 2009 Best of Business Award in the Satellite Remote Sensing Services category by the Small Business Commerce Association (SBCA)

The Small Business Commerce Association (SBCA) is pleased to announce that Satellite Imaging Corporation has been selected for the 2009 Best of Business Award in the Satellite Remote Sensing Services category.

The SBCA 2009 Award Program recognizes the top 5% of small businesses throughout the country. Using consumer feedback, the SBCA identifies companies that we believe have demonstrated what makes small businesses a vital part of the American economy. The selection committee chooses the award winners from nominees based off information taken from monthly surveys administered by the SBCA, a review of consumer rankings, and other consumer reports. Award winners are a valuable asset to their community and exemplify what makes small businesses great.

About Satellite Imaging Corporation:

Satellite Imaging Corporation (SIC), a privately held technology company that provides high resolution satellite imagery from satellite sensors such as GeoEye-1, WorldView-2 Worldview-1, QuickBird, IKONOS, SPOT-5 and other remote sensing products for analysis and mapping applications such as Geographic Information System (GIS).

The company specializes in mono and stereo satellite imaging technology producing seamless orthorectified satellite imaging mosaics DEM's and 3D terrain models for many industries using CAD and GIS applications including engineering and construction, homeland security, defense, intelligence and disaster response using high and medium resolution mono and stereo satellite image data.

For more information contact:

Satellite Imaging Corporation
12777 Jones Road, Suite 370
Houston, Texas 77070-4671
U.S.A.

Toll Free (866) 283-2952 (US and Canada only)
Tel: (1) 832-237-2900
Fax: (1) 832-237-2910
Website: www.satimagingcorp.com

About Small Business Commerce Association (SBCA)

Small Business Commerce Association (SBCA) is a San Francisco based organization. The SBCA is a private sector entity that aims to provide tactical guidance with many day to day issues that small business owners face. In addition to our main goal of providing a central repository of small business operational advice; we use consumer feedback to identify companies that exemplify what makes small business a vital part of the American economy.

The GeoEye-1 satellite sensor captured Iran’s hidden nuclear site under construction near Qom in September of 2009. Hidden in the hills, construction was started at the uranium enrichment site during 2006. The complex is on a military base controlled by Iran, making access difficult. But through information from satellite imagery, Iranian dissidents and other human intelligence, a sufficiently detailed picture was built up to convince investigators that Iran was preparing to make nuclear fuel there.

The IKONOS satellite sensor collected this 0.8m Satellite Image on February 5, 2000 showing pre-construction and imagery from the GeoEye-1 satellite (below) shows present construction. GeoEye-1 image taken on September 26,??2009 from 423 miles in space as Virginia based GeoEye’s newest satellite, GeoEye-1, moved from north to south over the Middle East at a speed of 7.5 km per second.

GeoEye-1 Satellite Image Detailed View of Uranium Enrichment Site – Qom, Iran

To view a video of zoomed in high resolution details of site go here

According to IHS Janes, who did the analysis of the imagery, the imagery shows a well fortified??facility with a??main entrance, which was seen under construction early this year, and is now a??building that abuts and provides access into the mountain. Small round ventilation shafts in the center of the mountain are near completion. Quarry equipment, a surface-to-air missile site, and more construction equipment surround the mountain. This facility is still under construction.

The small-scale site discovered near Qom is meant to house no more than 3,000 centrifuges. The enriching machines in Qom facility will produce nuclear fuel, which could possibly be further enriched into material for atomic warheads.

The global standoff over Iran's nuclear program began in 2002 with the discovery of two large nuclear facilities in Natanz and Arak. Tehran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes to generate electricity. Iran says it has built the facility inside a mountain next to a military site to protect its nuclear activities in case of an attack by the US or Israel.

Iran’s Existing Nuclear Sites

Arak – Heavy Water Plant

A 40 MWt heavy water moderated research reactor which should be ready for commissioning in 2014.

Natanz – Uranium Enrichment Plant

This once secret site was one of the two exposed by Alireza Jafarzadeh in August, 2002. Under the terms of Iran’s safeguards agreement, Iran was under no obligation to report the existence of the site while it was still under construction. There are currently approximately 7,000 centrifuges installed at Natanz, of which 5,000 are producing low enriched uranium.

Isfahan- Uranium Conversion Plant

A nuclear research facility that currently operates four small nuclear research reactors, all supplied by China.?? The Uranium Conversion Facility at Isfahan converts yellowcake into uranium hexafluoride. As of late October 2004, the site is 70% operational with 21 of 24 workshops completed. There is also a Zirconium Production Plant (ZPP) located nearby that produces the necessary ingredients and alloys for nuclear reactors.

Bushehr – Nuclear Power Station

Construction was completed in March 2009. The plant is planned to begin production by August 22, 2009 and would be brought up to full capacity by the end of March 2010.

Watch video of?? New York Post – Iran: The Nuclear Question

Latest News Update (November 17, 2009) – Russia delays Iranian reactor, Turkey awaits response on uranium storage

News Update (November 27, 2009) – Iran rebuked over nuclear ‘cover-up’ by UN watchdog

Governments and private enterprises throughout the Middle East, Asia, Africa, and Latin America, are quickly learning the value of Remote Sensing and GIS in maximizing security programs. This type of information can enable local governments to better assess and understand how to develop programs to save lives, protect property and enhance the future economic stability of their communities. The current threats to a country range from incidents of terrorism and information attacks on critical infrastructure to the potential use of weapons of mass destruction. Each one of these threats could cause massive casualties and disruption to a country.

By combining satellite imagery and terrain elevation databases from high resolution satellite images from satellite sensors such as GeoEye-1, WorldView-2, Worldview-1, QuickBird, IKONOS and SPOT-5 realistic and true-color 3D terrain visualizations can be created of any location on Earth for flight training, battlefield management, mission rehearsal, research, and other activities which provide vital information for aerial mission planners and command information systems. To view a 3d Fly Through flight simulations of another nuclear site go here.

About Satellite Imaging Corporation:

Satellite Imaging Corporation (SIC), a privately held technology company that provides high resolution satellite imagery from satellite sensors such as GeoEye-1, WorldView-2 Worldview-1, QuickBird, IKONOS, SPOT-5 and other remote sensing products for analysis and mapping applications such as Geographic Information System (GIS).

The company specializes in mono and stereo satellite imaging technology producing seamless orthorectified satellite imaging mosaics DEM's and 3D terrain models for many industries using CAD and GIS applications including engineering and construction, homeland security, defense, intelligence and disaster response using high and medium resolution mono and stereo satellite image data.

For more information contact:

Satellite Imaging Corporation
12777 Jones Road, Suite 370
Houston, Texas 77070-4671
U.S.A.

Toll Free (866) 283-2952 (US and Canada only)
Tel: (1) 832-237-2900
Fax: (1) 832-237-2910
Website: www.satimagingcorp.com