Information Highway
27 November 2006
The Group on Earth Observations (GEO) will be unveiling its revolutionary
GEONETCast system at its upcoming international conference, in Bonn, Germany on
Thursday, 28 November 2006. South Africa, a co-chair of the GEO since its
establishment in 2003, will be represented at this important event by the
Director-General of the Department of Science and Technology, Dr Phil Mjwara,
who is also expected to make an announcement regarding the next GEO Ministerial
to be held in Cape Town in November next year.
GEONETCast is an expanding user-driven, low-cost information dissemination
service, which is designed to put a vast range of essential environmental data
at the fingertips of decision-makers and many others around the globe. Data
about disease, drought, biodiversity, natural disasters, air and water quality,
ocean conditions and ecosystems, will provide critical information required to
protect lives and more effectively manage world resources.
GEO is an intergovernmental organisation that is leading a worldwide effort
to build a Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) over the next 10
years. The GEOSS will work with and build upon existing national, regional and
international systems to provide comprehensive, co-ordinated Earth Observations
from thousands of instruments worldwide and transforming the data they collect
into vital information for society.
GEONETCast is a milestone in the growing GEOSS and is the result of a
co-operative effort organised by the European Organisation for the Exploitation
of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT), the United States, China and the World
Meteorological Organisation.
South Africa already has the capabilities to receive GEONETCast data through
four receiving stations located at the South African Weather Services (SAWS),
the Agricultural Research Council (ARC), the Council for Industrial and
Scientific Research (CSIR) and the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN).
From the data received, the ARC develops and distributes vital information
pertaining to rainfall and crop estimation, amongst other things, which is then
distributed within the SA agricultural community through the Agricultural
Geospatial Information System (AGIS) (see: http://www.agis.agric.za).
For more information contact:
Kristin Klose
Director: Communication, Department of Science and Technology
Cell: 082 902 9503
E-mail: kristin.klose@dst.gov.za
Issued by: Department of Science and Technology
27 November 2006
Source: SAPA
