24 Feb SANSA coordinates the third Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) WGCapD workshop in Gabon
SANSA coordinates the third Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) WGCapD workshop in Gabon
The 3rd Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) workshop is taking place in Libreville, Gabon, ends today. The week long workshop, 20 – 24 February, was coordinated by SANSA as the chair of CEOS Working Group on Capacity Development and Data Democracy (WGCapD).
Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is a form of radar that is used to create two- or 3-dimensional images of objects, such as landscapes. SAR uses the motion of the radar antenna over a target region to provide finer spatial resolution than conventional beam-scanning radars.
Participants in this workshop will be learning about different SAR applications such as ship detection, oil spills, land cover mapping, agriculture, flood mapping, biomass &; forestry. The workshop is attended by delegates from Rwanda, Code d’Ivore, Senegal, Tunisia, Kenya, Ghana and Gabon.
For the countries of central Africa faced with significant cloud cover, the SAR data are complementary. But you need a good understanding to process and analyse the SAR images. These SAR workshops also make it possible for students to move towards remote sensing.
The main objective for conducting these workshops was to build SAR capacity in the region. Having noticed that most training and capacity building initiatives in earth observation were in optical remote sensing, as a result, there was a gap that had to be filled in building capacity in SAR technology.
Therefore, the three workshops have been WGCapD’s initiative to bridge that gap.
The Gabon CEOS SAR workshop was made possible due to the support from the following agencies, the Gabonese Space Agency (AGEOS), UNOOSA and ESA-Copernicus. These organizations collectively funded the workshop and ensured that the participants’ costs were covered.
Other organisations that also made a significant contribution to the success of the workshop by providing SAR experts to conduct lectures during the workshop; are NASA, Germany Aerospace Agency (DLR), SAREDU and the French University of Marne-la-Vallee.
In 2016 SANSA coordinated two SAR training workshop in Lusaka and Pretoria in October 2016 and January 2017, respectively. These two workshops had participants from SADC countries.