SENTINEL ASIA
ANNUAL REPORT 2021

Sentinel Asia
Annual Report 2021
Contents
1. Introduction ·············································································· 1
1.1.

Purpose and Scope of the Document ·························································· 1

1.2.

Structure of the Document ········································································ 1

1.3.

List of Acronyms····················································································· 2

2. Sentinel Asia and Major Disasters ················································ 4
2.1.

Outline of Sentinel Asia ············································································ 42.1.1. Background and History of Sentinel Asia ···················································· 4
2.1.2. Aims and Activities of Sentinel Asia in a Nutshell ·········································· 6
2.1.3. Framework and Emergency Observation Mechanisms of Sentinel Asia·············· 7
2.1.4. Current Phase (Step 3) and Ongoing Actions of Sentinel Asia ························· 8
2.2.

Major Disasters in Emergency Observation (2007-2021) ·································10

3. Emergency Observation Operations in 2021 ································ 12
3.1.

Emergency Observation Requests ·····························································123.2.

Results of Emergency Observation ····························································15

3.3.

Good Practices ·····················································································19

3.3.1. Oil spill in Sri Lanka (June 2021) ····························································19
3.3.2. Earthquake in Tajikistan (July 2021) ························································21
3.3.3. Volcanic eruption in Indonesia (December 2021) ········································23
3.3.4. Tropical Storm “Odette” in Philippines (December 2021) ······························25

4. External Relations ···································································· 29
4.1.

Accession of New Members ·····································································29

4.2.

Collaboration and Cooperation··································································29

4.2.1. International Disaster Charter ·································································29

5. Conferences and Releases ························································ 30
5.1.

Conferences·························································································30

5.1.1. Sentinel Asia Training Program on “Space Technology for Drought Risk
Management” ·····················································································30
5.1.2. Sentinel Asia Webinar “Space Technology for Flood Forecast Modelling”, organizedby ISRO and IWMI ···············································································32
5.1.3. Special Session on Sentinel Asia “Sentinel Asia for the ASEAN Region” under the
ACE Program ····················································································33
5.1.4. 27th Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF) ··························35
5.2.

Documents, Press Releases and Papers·····················································37

5.2.1Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for making EORs in Myanmar, Thailand,
and Vietnam ·······················································································37

5.2.2

Commitment to the Sendai framework ······················································39

6. Assessment of Sentinel Asia Operations ····································· 40
6.1.

Analysis of Operational Performance··························································40

7. Conclusions ············································································ 45

Appendix-

Newsletter (2021)-

List of JPT Members-

Emergency Observation Requests (2007 - 2021)-

JPT member report “Sentinel Asia Activity in 2021”

Chapter 1: Introduction

1. Introduction
1.1. Purpose and Scope of the Document
This document describes the activities of Sentinel Asia (SA) in 2021 for member
organizations and external relations.

1.2. Structure of the Document
This report follows the following structure:

Chapter 1 Introduction
Chapter 2 Sentinel Asia and Major Disasters: overview and target disaster events
related to Sentinel Asia
Chapter 3 Emergency Observation Operations in 2021: results of emergency
observation activities in 2021
Chapter 4 External Relations: explanation of the integration of new members, progress,
external relationships and Cooperating Bodies
Chapter 5 Conference and Releases: reports on all communication activities
undertaken throughout the reporting period
Chapter 6 Assessment of Sentinel Asia Operations: assessment of the overall impact of
Sentinel Asia as a service in supporting disaster response, and of system performance,
products and services.
Chapter 7 Conclusions: outline of significant achievements and conclusions throughout
the reporting period.

1Chapter 1: Introduction

1.3. List of Acronyms
ADPC

Asian Disaster Preparedness Center

ADRC

Asian Disaster Reduction Center

AHA Center

ASEAN

Coordinating

Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster

Management
AIT

Asian Institute of Technology

ALOS

Advanced Land Observing Satellite

APRSAF

Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum

ASEAN

Association of South-East Asian Nations

CAIAG

Central-Asian Institute for Applied Geosciences

CRISP

Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing

CU

Chiba University

DAN

Data Analysis Node

DPN

Data Provider Node

EOC

Earth Observatory of Singapore

EOR

Emergency Observation Request

GISTDA

Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency

ICIMODInternational Center for Integrated Mountain Development

ICT

Information and Communication Technology

IDC

International Disaster Charter

IRS

Indian Remote Sensing Satellite

ISRO

Indian Space Research Organization

IWMI

International Water Management Institute

JAXA

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency

JICA

Japan International Cooperation Agency

JPTM

Joint Project Team Meeting

KARI

Korea Aerospace Research Institute

LAPAN

National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (Indonesia)

MBRSC

Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre

MO

Manila Observatory

NARLabs

National Applied Research Laboratories

NIED

National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience

NSPO

National Space Organization

RSO

Regional Support Offices

SA

Sentinel Asia

2

Chapter 1: Introduction

SAWG

Space Applications Working Group

SPC

Secretariat of the Pacific Community

UNDRR

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

UNESCAP

United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific

UNOCHA

United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

UNOOSA

United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs

VAP

Value Added Product

VIGMR

Vietnam Institute of Geosciences and Mineral Resources

WINDS

Wideband Internetworking engineering test and Demonstration Satellite

YU

Yamaguchi University

3Chapter 2: Sentinel Asia and Major Disasters

2.

Sentinel Asia and Major Disasters

2.1. Outline of Sentinel Asia

2.1.1. Background and History of Sentinel Asia
Natural hazards have been on the rise worldwide, including the Asia-Pacific region(Figure 1). The Asia-Pacific region suffers from different types of natural hazards, suchas earthquakes, cyclones/typhoons, floods, landslides, droughts, tsunamis, volcanic
eruptions and forest fires. Several of them are large-scale, devastating disasters. Given
the high population level (about 3 billion) as well as the high frequency and severity ofnatural hazards in the region, an integrated use of space technology, such as earth
observation satellite data and geographic information systems, can be an effectivemeans to reduce the magnitude of the severity, or provide timely management in theevent of a large-scale natural hazard or disaster. In light of the increasing frequency ofnatural hazards and an elevated loss of lives and properties from these events, SA, acollaborative, regional project, was conceptualized in 2005, and began operation in2007. It is engaged in activities to share and provide disaster-related information,
including earth observation satellite images via the internet, in order to contributetoward disaster management in the Asia-Pacific region. Space agencies from themember countries of the Asia-Pacific Region Space Agency Forum (APRSAF), including
the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), and disaster risk reduction agencies
in the Asia-Pacific region, such as the Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC),
cooperate in forming a Joint Project Team (JPT) and promoting SA. As of December
2021, it consists of 112-member organizations, including 95 agencies from 29
countries/regions, and 17 international organizations. JAXA has been serving as asecretariat of the JPT.

4

Chapter 2: Sentinel Asia and Major Disasters

550

500

450

400

350

300

250

200

150

100

50

0

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

Flood

Storm

Earthquake

Wildfire

Epidemic

Volcanic activity

Extreme temperature

Drought

Mass Movement

GLOF

Landslide

Figure 1: Incidence of Natural Hazards by Region (in and after 1990)

A stepwise approach for the implementation of data and information dissemination
systems through SA as proposed by the APRSAF was as follows:

Step 1: Implementation of the backbone ‘Sentinel Asia’ data dissemination system andassociated Nodes (Feb. 2006–Dec. 2007)
Step 2: Expansion of the dissemination backbone with new Satellite Communication
Systems (2008–2012)
Step 3: Establishment of a comprehensive ‘Disaster Management Support System’ inthe region (2013 onwards)

Sentinel Asia initiated an emergency observation request system in 2007 to provide
image data (and analyzed images) acquired through the satellites operated byparticipating space agencies on the internet and via JAXA’s Wideband Internetworking
engineering test and Demonstration Satellite (WINDS), also known as Kizuna, in theevent of a disaster in the Asia-Pacific region.
5

Chapter 2: Sentinel Asia and Major Disasters

During that time, Sentinel Asia participated in the International Disaster Charter(IDC) in 2010 to expand its activities and cooperation on a global scale. Sentinel Asia
also established the Regional Support Office (RSO) for the United Nations Platform forSpace-based Information for Disaster Management and Emergency Response (UNSPIDER) at the ADRC in June 2009, which serves as a contact (liaison) office for
emergency observation requests, to expand the range of its activities and increaseinternational interest.

2.1.2. Aims and Activities of Sentinel Asia in a Nutshell
The SA aims to: (i) improve safety in society with the use of modern Information andCommunication Technology (ICT) and space-based technology; (ii) improve the speed
and accuracy of disaster preparedness and early warning; and (iii) minimize thenumber of victims, as well as social and economic losses. To achieve these goals,
various activities have been undertaken.

The main activities of the SA are summarized as follows:・

Emergency observation by earth observation satellites (e.g. ALOS-2, FORMOSAT-5,
RESOURCESAT-2,

OCEANSAT-2/OCM,

IMS-1,CARTOSAT-1&2,

RISAT-1,

Thaichote, VNREDSAT, TeLEOS-1, and KHALIFASAT) in the event of majordisasters
・

Acceptance of observation requests for major disasters in the Asia-Pacific region
from ADRC member organizations and the representative organizations of JPT
members to support disaster management in the region

・Working Groups (WGs) for early warning and disaster monitoring: WGs on
wildfires, floods, glacial lake outburst floods, and tsunamis are (formed and) in
operation

・Capacity building of member organizations (e.g., through training) for theutilization of satellite images for disaster management

The following is an overview of the main data and products provided by SA to its
members: (i) satellite imagery (and data permitted by data providers) and value-added6

Chapter 2: Sentinel Asia and Major Disasters

images with an extraction of the affected area, etc.; (ii) on-site digital camera images;(iii) wildfire hotspot information and data; (iv) rainfall (short-term and long-term)
information and data; and (v) meteorological satellite imagery and data.

2.1.3. Framework and Emergency Observation Mechanisms of Sentinel Asia
SA is promoted under cooperation among the following three communities: (i) theSpace Community (APRSAF); (ii) the International Community (e.g., UNESCAP,UNOOSA, ASEAN, AIT); and (iii) the Disaster Reduction Community (ADRC and its
member countries), as illustrated in Figure 2. The JPT was established to promote theactivities of SA, and it is open to all APRSAF member countries, disaster prevention
organizations and regional/international organizations who wish to participate indisaster information sharing activities.

Figure 2: Framework of Sentinel Asia

SA is composed of two Nodes (Data Provider, and Data Analysis) and four Working
Groups (Wildfire, Flood, Glacial Lake Outburst Flood and Tsunami). The Data Provider
Node (DPN) provides their own satellite imagery and other relevant data to JPT
7

Chapter 2: Sentinel Asia and Major Disasters

members upon an Emergency Observation Request (EOR) from a JPT member, to theextent permitted by the data policy of each DPN when a disaster occurs; while the Data
Analysis Node (DAN) analyzes the satellite data provided by DPN, makes a valueadded product and uploads and shares the result through the new Sentinel Asia EOR
system “OPTEMIS”, which started operation in 2019 (Figure 3). Between 2006 and2021, about 423 EORs have been made or accepted, providing data and products to its
members to support disaster management. The four WGs work toward theestablishment and improvement of early warning/forecasting systems, as well as
monitoring and planning for disaster management in their respective fields.

Figure 3: Flow of Sentinel Asia emergency observation

2.1.4. Current Phase (Step 3) and Ongoing Actions of Sentinel Asia
Out of the 3 Steps employed by Sentinel Asia, the successful completion of Steps 1 and2 has so far been declared. Step 3 began in 2013, defining its priority areas based on
experiences in the earlier Steps and user requests leading to necessary actions as
8

Chapter 2: Sentinel Asia and Major Disasters

shown in Figure 4.

The key features of Step 3 are:・

Covering all phases in a disaster management cycle

・

Employing a wide variety of satellites, including earth observation satellites,
communication satellites and navigation satellites

・

Being managed as a joint project by participating agencies, through the planned
construction of a joint management system

・Promoting the use of services by expanding human networks through capacity
development and outreach activities

Figure 4: Current Phase (Step 3) and Actions of Sentinel Asia

9

Chapter 2: Sentinel Asia and Major Disasters

2.2.

Major Disasters with Emergency Observation (2007-2021)

Figures 5 and 6 show a breakdown of emergency observations with requests andemergency observations with activation by disaster. Floods represent the largest
number of disasters with 212 requests (50.1%), followed by earthquakes at 54 (12.8%),
landslides at 28 (6.6%), typhoons at 36 (8.5%), forest fires and fires at 18 (4.3%),
volcanic eruptions at 22 (5.2%), and cyclones at 22 (5.2%). Generally, activation is madefor around 88.9% of requests for most disasters.

Forest Fire, 18

Oil Spill, 6

Cyclone, 22
Volcano, 22
Others, 25

Landslide, 28

Flood, 212
Typhoon,36

Earthquake, 54

Figure 5: Breakdown of Emergency Observations by Disaster (2007 - 2021)*Requests (N=423)

Forest Fire, 8
Others, 18

Oil Spill, 4Volcano, 19
Cyclone, 21

Landslide, 23
Flood, 200
Typhoon, 34

Earthquake, 49

Figure 6: Breakdown of Emergency Observations by Disaster (2007 - 2021)*Activations (N=376)

10

Chapter 2: Sentinel Asia and Major Disasters

Table 1 shows the number of requests, activations, and rejections for each type ofdisaster.
Requests related to floods, earthquakes, landslides, typhoons, volcanoes and cyclones
are activated for more than 80% of all requests. However, the activation ratio regarding
forest fires is 44.4%. The reasons are that it was difficult to accurately confirm theaffected area and the breakdown of communication with the requesters. The activation
ratio regarding oil spills is 66.7%. The rejected requests were submitted in 2011 and2013; those oil spills were considered manmade disasters and outside of the scope of
EOR activity. On the other hand, all of the requests regarding oil spills from 2015
onwards were accepted.

Table 1: Number of Requests, Activations, and Rejections for Emergency
Observations by Disaster (2007 - 2021)
Number of Request

Number of Acti va ti on Number of Rejecti on

Acti va ti on/Re quest
(%)

Flood

212

200

12

94.3%

Earthquake

54

49

5

90.7%

Landslide

28

23

5

82.1%

Typhoon / Storm

36

34

2

94.4%

Forest Fire

18

8

10

44.4%

Volcano

22

19

3

86.4%

Cyclone

22

21

1

95.5%

Oil Spill

6

4

2

66.7%

Others

25

18

7

72.0%

Total

423

376

47

11

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

3. Emergency Observation Operations in 2021

3.1.

Emergency Observation Requests

Figure 7 shows the number of requests, activations and rejections involving emergency
observations from 2007 to 2021. The number of requests and activations peaked in2010 and 2011, with the number declining subsequently thereafter, but the number
increased once again from 2015 to 2016. The number has begun decreasing gradually
once more since 2016. And 34 requests were submitted and activated in 2021.

50
43
40
40
36
34

35

32
31

31

3434
31
30

30

28
25

24

25
24

2828
Request25

Activation
20
20
15

18
16

19

18

10

8

Rejection

19
18

9

6

5

20
18

6

2

2

1

1

2014

2015

2

3
1

1

2017

2018

0
2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2016

2019

2020

2021

Figure 7: Comparison of the Number of Requests, Activations and Rejections for
Emergency Observations

Figures 8 and 9 show a breakdown of emergency observations with requests andemergency observations with activation by disaster. On a request basis, floods
represented the largest number of disasters, with 23 requests (67.6%), followed byvolcanic eruptions at 3 (8.8%), and earthquakes and typhoons at 3 (5.9%).

12

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

Table 2: List of 2021 Activations
Activation
NumberCountry

Disaster Type

Implementation

Requester390

Indonesia

Earthquake

2021/1/15

LAPAN, BNPB

391

Philippines

Tropic al Depression

2021/2/22

MO

392

Indonesia

Flood, Landslide

2021/4/6

LAPAN, BNPB

393

East Timor

Flood, Landslide

2021/4/8

JICA, Sec retary of State for Civil
protec tion

394

Philippines

Flood2021/5/14

MO395

Tajikistan

Landslide2021/5/14

CAIAG, CoES

396

India

Flood

2021/5/18

ISRO, DMS

397

India

Cyc lone

2021/5/26

ISRO, DMS

398

Philippines

Typhoon2021/6/2

MO399

Sri Lanka

Oil spill2021/6/4

DMC

400

Sri Lanka

Flood2021/6/5

DMC

401

Nepal

Flood, Flash flood,Landslide2021/6/16

Department of Hydrology andMeteorology (Nepal)

402

Tajikistan

Earthquake

2021/7/14

CAIAG

403

Kyrgyzstan

Flash Flood2021/7/14

CAIAG

404

Uzbekistan

Flash Flood2021/7/14

CAIAG

405

Kyrgyzstan

Flood and Other

2021/7/22

CAIAG

406

Philippines

Typhoon, Flood,Landslide2021/7/25

MO

407

MyanmarFlood2021/7/27

AHA Center, DDM

408

TurkeyFlood2021/8/13

AFAD

409

Japan

Flood and Landslide

2021/8/14

ADRC, MLIT

2021/9/8

MO

2021/9/12

MONRE

2021/9/29

GISTDA

2021/10/7

MONRE

2021/10/10

MONRE

410

Philippines

411

Vietnam

412

ThailandFlood, Landslide,
Storm
Flood, Landslide,
Storm
Flood
Flood, Landslide,
Storm
Flood, Landslide,
Storm

413

Vietnam

414

Vietnam

415

Philippines

Flood, Landslide

2021/10/13

MO

416

India

Flood, Landslide,Storm

2021/10/17

ISRO, DMS

417

Japan

Volc anic Eruption

2021/10/20

ADRC, MLIT

418

VietnamFlood, Landslide

2021/10/25

MONRE

419

India

Flood

2021/11/9

ISRO, DMS

420

Sri Lanka

Flood, Landslide

2021/11/12

DMC

421

Philippines

Floating pumic estones & volc anicdebris2021/11/24

PHIVOLCS

422

Indonesia

Volc anic Eruption

2021/12/7

JICA, PUPR, AHA Center

Philippines

Flood, Landslide,Storm

2021/12/14

MO

423

13

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

Others, 1

Oil Spill, 1
Cyclone, 1
Landslide, 1Typhoon, 2
Earthquake (orTsunami), 2

Flood, 23
Volcano, 3

Figure 8: Breakdown of Emergency Observations by Disaster *Requests in 2021
*Requests (N=34)

Cyclone, 1

Oil Spill, 1

Others, 1

Landslide, 1Typhoon, 2

Earthquake (orTsunami), 2
Flood, 23
Volcano, 3

Figure 9: Breakdown of Emergency Observations by Disaster *Activations in
2021*Activations (N=34)

14

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

3.2.

Results of Emergency Observations

During 2021, the monthly average of activations was 2.8. Figure 10 shows the monthly
distribution of activations throughout 2021. The highest number of activations
occurred in July and October, corresponding to 35.3% of the total number.

7
6

6

6

5
4

4

4

3

3

3

2

2

2

2

1

1

1

0

Figure 10: Number of Monthly Activations in 2021

Figure 11 shows the number of emergency observations by country. Countries andregions with a large number of requests are mostly located in Southeast Asia andSouth Asia, including the Philippines, India, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka. The
country with the highest number of activations was the Philippines, at 8 activations.

15

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

8

8
6

4

4

4
3

3

2

2

2

2
1

1

1

1

1

1

0

Figure 11: Number of Activations by Country in 2021

Figure 12 shows the number of implementations for providing Archive data and New
Acquisition by DPN. In total, 34 implementations for providing Archive data and 90
implementations for providing New Acquisition were made in 2021.

30

28
26

25

23
20

20

17

15
10
6
5
1

1

CRISP

MBRSC

0
JAXA

ISRO

NARL

GISTDA

Archive

New Acquisition

Figure 12: Number of Responses by DPN in 2021

16

STI/VAST

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

DPN has been providing a lot of satellite images, including optical and radar data,when an EOR is activated. DAN have also been supportive by providing Value Added
Products (VAP), including KMZ files and shapefiles for GIS. This data is uploaded to
OPTEMIS and the SA website (https://sentinel-asia.org/index.html). Figure 13 shows
the number of optical and radar data by DPN which were uploaded to the SA website.

446

450
400
350
300

257

250
200

183
171

150
100
44

50

27
1

3

CRISP

MBRSC

0
JAXA

ISRO

NARL

GISTDA

Archive

STI/VAST

New Acquisition

Figure 13: Data Consumption (Archive and New Acquisition) by DPN in 2021

17

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

Figure 14 shows the number of implementations by DAN in 2021. Figure 15 shows thenumber of provided VAP in 2020. In total, 30 were implemented, and 146 VAPs were
provided to requesters.
20

18

15

10

4

5

4
2

1

1

YU

CU

0

AIT

EOS

MBRSC

RIKEN

Figure 14: Number of responses by DAN in 2021

80

62
54

60

40

27
20

1

1

1

RIKEN

YU

CU

0

AIT

EOS

MBRSC

Figure 15: Number of VAP by DAN in 2021

18

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

3.3. Good Practices

3.3.1. Oil spill in Sri Lanka (June 2021)[EOR Requestor] Disaster Management Center (DMC)[SA website URL] https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210525LK.html

Sri Lanka being a small island in the Indian Ocean in the path of two monsoons ismostly affected by weather related hazards. It is surrounded by 1,340 kilometers ofbeach frontage and with an abundance of breathtaking inland waterways, including
rivers, lakes, reservoirs and tanks. Floods mostly due to monsoonal rain or effects of
low-pressure systems and droughts due to failure of monsoonal rain are the mostcommon hazards experienced in Sri Lanka.
In 2009, Disaster Management Centre (DMC) initiated a hazard profiles development
process in collaboration with the relevant technical agencies, which are responsible forthe disaster mitigation activities of the country. Hence, it was decided to develop nine
hazard profiles of the country, namely, Coastal Erosion, Drought, Floods, Landslides,
Lightning, Sea Level Rise, Storm Surge, Tropical Cyclone and Tsunami. In addition tonatural disasters, there have been many manmade disasters. In May 2021, large-scale
oil spill and fire occurred, caused by a sunken container ship of the Singaporeregistered X-Press Pearl. The Singapore-registered X-Press Pearl had been on fire for
two weeks near the port of Colombo. Part of the hull settled on the seabed. Experts
determined that hundreds of tons of oil in the ship’s tanks could devastate nearby
marine life and beaches. DMC decided to send an EOR related to this manmade
disaster.
The ADRC received the EOR from DMC and transferred a DPN/DAN on June 4, 2021.
The first satellite images from the DPN were provided on June 4. Finally, 76 satellite
images were provided by ISRO, GISTDA, JAXA, and NARL, and the first VAP from the
DAN was provided on June 4. Two VAPs were provided by AIT. A lot of valuable
information was provided and it was utilized to inform the situation in the affectedarea of the oil spill. Also, JAXA provided a WEB-GIS service that allows users tocompare satellite images before and after the disaster.

19

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

DMC used the data to understand the spatial distribution of the oil spill and possible
oil leak emanating from the ship’s hull. Mitigation Research & Development Division of
DMC converted the satellite data into information in collaboration with National
Oceanic Atmospheric Administration and shared with all the stakeholders involved in
the response activities of the oil spill. This information was used with information onwind patterns, to take the decision to control the hazard as it provides information on
the spreading of hazards. Furthermore, the information was very important to identify
the damage and recovery process of disaster.

Figure 16: VAP (provided by AIT)(ADRC: https://www.adrc.asia/)

20

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

3.3.2. Earthquake in Tajikistan (July 2021)[EOR Requestor] Central Asian Institute of Applied Geosciences (CAIAG)[SA website URL] https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210707TJ.html

Tajikistan is prone to many types of natural hazards, including floods, mudflows,
landslides (mudslides), epidemics, drought, earthquakes, avalanches, insect infestation
and windstorms. About 93% of the country’s area is mountainous, which widely varies
in height from several hundred meters to 6,000-7,000 meters above sea level.
Earthquakes are typical for Tajikistan and represent a substantial threat in many
parts of the country, specifically in urban environments like Dushanbe, where potential
earthquake magnitudes can be as high as 8-9 on the Richter scale. Earthquakes in
Tajikistan are seriously dangerous, since they cover broad areas and are able to cause
considerable damage to reservoir dams, buildings and communications.
On July 10, 2021, a large-scale earthquake, Magnitude 5.8 at a depth of 17 km, hit in
the Tojikobod District. The epicenter was located approximately 14 km southeast ofKalanak Town and 38 km east-southeast of Navobod village. Two aftershocks ofMagnitude 4.6 have been recorded in the area, as reported by USGS. According to
USGS PAGER, up to 5,000 people were exposed to strong shaking. Central Asian
Institute of Applied Geosciences (CAIAG) submitted an EOR to ADRC on July 14.
The ADRC received the EOR from CAIAG and transferred a DPN/DAN on July 14,
2021. The first satellite images from the DPN were provided on July 19. Finally, 9satellite images were provided by ISRO and JAXA, and the first VAP from the DAN
was provided on July 21. Two VAPs were provided by AIT. Also, JAXA provided a WEBGIS service that allows users to compare satellite images before and after the disaster.
CAIAG used the data for in consequence analysis assessment of influences ofearthquake on activation of landslide hazards. All these got products was represented
and shared between scientific reserchers for raising awareness in the community about
opportunities used satellite images included in system of Sentinel Asia.

21

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

Figure 17: VAP (provided by AIT)(ADRC:https://www.adrc.asia/view_disaster_en.php?NationCode=762&Lang=en&Key=2454)(UNOCHA: https://reliefweb.int/report/tajikistan/tajikistan-earthquake-gdacs-usgs-niatecho-daily-flash-12-july-2021)(USGS: https://earthquake.usgs.gov/)

22

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

3.3.3. Volcano eruption in Indonesia (December 2021)[EOR Requestor] Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)[SA website URL] https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211204ID.html

Indonesia is located in a disaster-prone area, and being susceptible to various types ofnatural hazards, it can be considered a kind of “laboratory of disasters” due to its
geographical, geological and demographic condition. Indonesia is situated in the“Pacific Ring of Fire”, an area located between three tectonic plates (Indo-Australia,
Eurasian and Pacific) encircling the Pacific Ocean where frequent earthquakes andvolcanic activity result from the movements of the tectonic plates. In particular, there
are more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia, and volcanic eruptions frequently
cause massive damage every year.
The Mt. Sumeru erupted in the East Java province of Indonesia on December 4, 2021.
According to this eruption, pyroclastic flows and mud flow caused heavy damage in thesurrounding area. According to the report by the Badan Nasional Penanggulangan
Bencana (BNPB) as official National Disaster Management Agency, the death tollreached 57, and 23 residents are missing as of December 17, 2021. In light of thissituation, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) decided to send an EOR
related to the disaster through their strong network of a JICA long-term Expert and
JICA Indonesia Office.
The ADRC received the EOR from JICA and transferred a DPN/DAN on December 4,2021. The first satellite images from the DPN were provided on December 5, 1 day
after the occurrence of the disaster. Finally, 29 satellite images were provided by ISRO,JAXA, and NARL, and the first VAP from the DAN was provided on December 5.
Twenty VAPs were provided by EOS, MBRSC, and Yamaguchi University. A lot of
valuable information was provided and it was utilized to inform the situation in theaffected area. Also, JAXA provided a WEB-GIS service that allows users to compare
satellite images before and after the disaster.
First, JICA shared the provided data with the Ministry of Public Works and Housing(PUPR) which is one of the ministries in Indonesia responsible for post-disasteremergency recovery.
PUPR and its field survey team used the data to determine the field survey locations
23

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

and routes which were conducted on December 9. The WEB-GIS system, provided by
JAXA, could be contrasted with the information obtained from the field survey. In
particular, VAPs provided by EOS were very useful to understand the overall picture of
the damage because access to the affected area was limited in the early phase of the
field survey. It was found out that this VAP showed topographic changes due to thevolcanic deposits that occurred in December 2020 eruption and this time. Furthermore,
the VAPs represented the distribution of the volcanic deposits which indicated a risk ofdebris flows that could not be ascertained by the early phase of the field survey. Finally,
all of the material was also provided to the PUPR headquarters, its field offices and its
technical office. This information is also important to review the existing Sabo (Erosion
and Sediment Control) Master Plan of Mt. Sumeru, which JICA is planning to support
next.

Figure 18: VAP (provided by EOS)
(UNOCHA: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/vo-2021-000194-idn)

24

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

3.3.4. Tropical Storm “Odette” in Philippines (December 2021)[EOR Requestor] Manila Observatory (MO)[SA website URL] https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211214PH.html

The Philippines is prone to almost all types of natural hazards because of its
geographical location and geotectonic setting. In addition, the Philippines is situatedalong the highly-seismic Pacific Ring of Fire. This is the area where the Philippine Sea
and Eurasian Tectonic Plates meet, and it is prone to occurrences of earthquakes,
tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions. There are 300 volcanoes in the country, of which 24
are active. Meanwhile, major hydro-meteorological disasters experienced by thePhilippines include tropical cyclones, landslides, and flooding.
On December 16, 2021, Super Typhoon “Odette” brought heavy rains and floods to the
Visayas and Mindanao Islands in the Philippines. Based on the Disaster Response
Operation Monitoring and Information Center (DROMIC) report, as of March 2022, theestimated total affected population in the Southern Leyte and Caraga Region is around
513,000 families (approximately 1,947,000 individuals). Fatalities reached 410 in total,
with 80 missing. The Manila Observatory (MO) sent an emergency observation request
or EOR on December 14 for Tropical Storm “Odette.”
The ADRC received the EOR from the Manila Observatory (MO) as a Data Processing
Node/Data Analysis Node (DPN/DAN) on December 14, 2021. According to an early
request from MO, Sentinel Asia members could provide satellite data. The firstsatellite images were provided on December 17, when Tropical Storm “Odette” madelandfall. Finally, 83 satellite images were provided by GISTDA, ISRO, JAXA, andNARL, and the first value-added product was provided on December 17, 2021. AIT,
EOS, and MBRSC provided 42 VAPs. Much of this valuable information was provided
and utilized to inform the stakeholders in the affected areas. Also, JAXA provided a
WEB-GIS service that allowed users to compare satellite images before and after thedisaster.
MO used the data processed by Earth Emergency Observatory of Singapore – Remote
Sensing (EOS-RS). The processed data showed observed floods from ALOS-2 PALSAR-2
products provided by JAXA. The extent of the flooding was detected using thedifference in pixel values of historical and post-disaster images observed on June 6,25

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

2019, and December 16, 2021, respectively. In particular, the municipalities of Hilongos,
Bato, Hindang, Baybay City, Javier, Abuyog, and Mahaplag in Leyte Island were
flooded (figure 19). To assess the impact of Super Typhoon “Odette,” the extracted flood
was spatially overlaid with exposed elements such as critical infrastructure (figure 20),
population density per province (figure 21), and land cover (figure 22).

Figure 19: Detected Flood on Leyte Island (ALOS-2 PALSAR-2 Product from
JAXA, December 16, 2021)

26

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

Figure 20: Exposed Critical Infrastructures to Flood on Leyte Island (December
16, 2021)

Figure 21: Exposed Population to Detected Flood on Leyte Island
27

Chapter 3: Emergency Observation Operation in 2021

Figure 22: Exposed Land Cover to Flood on Leyte Island(ADRC:https://www.adrc.asia/view_disaster_en.php?NationCode=&Lang=en&Key=2507)(UNHCR: https://www.unhcr.org/ph/typhoon-rai-odette)

28

Chapter 4: External Relations

4. External Relations

4.1. Accession of New Members*No new JPT members in 2021
4.2. Collaboration and Cooperation

4.2.1

International Disaster Charter

The rollout to IDC began in February 2010 as required. Ten disasters were escalated
through SA in 2021. This figure means that 10 out of 34 EORs, corresponding to 29.4%,
were requested to IDC via Sentinel Asia.

Table 3 List of Charter Escalations in 2021
Acti va ti on
NumberCountry

Disaster TypeActi va ti on
Da teReques ter

Project Ma na ger

390

Indonesia

Earthquake

15-Jan-21

LAPAN, BNPB

LAPAN

391

Philippines

Tropical Depression

22-Feb-21

MO

-

392

Indonesia

Flood, Landslide

6-Apr-21

LAPAN, BNPBLAPANJICA, Secretary of State for Civil

393

East Timor

Flood, Landslide

8-Apr-21

399

Sri Lanka

Oil spill

4-Jun-21

DMC

DMC

400

Sri Lanka

Flood

5-Jun-21

DMC

CGIAR

409

Japan

Flood and Landslide

14-Aug-21

ADRC, MLIT

Yamaguchi University

420

Sri Lanka

Flood, Landslide

12-Nov-21

DMC

JAXA

24-Nov-21

PHIVOLCSPHIVOLCS

7-Dec-21

JICA, PUPR, AHA Center

AIT

421

Philippines

422

Indonesia

Floating pumice stones &volcanic debris
Volcanic Eruption

29

protection

UNITAR/UNOSATChapter 5: Communication and Conference5.

Conferences and Press Releases

International conferences on space technology and Sentinel Asia’s annual meetings
have been held every year. However, almost all conferences were cancelled or conducted
online due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021.

5.1.

5.1.1

Conferences

Sentinel Asia Training Program on “Space Technology for Drought Risk
Management” (19-20 July 2021)

The webinar on “Space Technology for Drought Risk Management” was held from 19
to 20 July 2021. The webinar was co-organized by the ISRO and the IWMI and was
facilitated by the Sentinel Asia secretariat as part of Sentinel Asia’s Capacity Building
Program.
The objective of the program was to brief the participants from Sentinel Asia memberson the potential and current status of utilization of EO technology for operational
drought monitoring, in-season drought management, drought impacts assessments andlong-term drought management. Advances in drought assessment with new datasets
and emerging technologies also form part of this program.
The program consisted of expert presentations and an interactive session to make themessage to be conveyed more impactful. Scope for enhancing technology utilization,need for customization of products and services, research gaps, as well as data andinformation sharing opportunities were planned and documented for future courses ofaction towards establishing a regional cooperation mechanism for drought risk
management.
This webinar brought together around 50 experts and practitioners from the Sentinel
Asia community. The inaugural session of the training program included the inaugural
address by Dr. V. V. Rao, Deputy Director, Remote Sensing Applications, NRSC andbrief remarks by (a) Dr. Shantanu Bhatwadekar, Director, Earth observation
applications & Disaster management support Program Office (EDPO), ISRO Hq. (b) Dr.
Raj Kumar, Director, NRSC (ISRO) (c) Dr. Rachael McDonnell, Deputy Director

30

Chapter 5: Communication and Conference

General, IWMI, Sri Lanka and Mr. Takanori Miyoshi (Sentinel Asia Secretariat). Thiskind of capacity-building event in which Sentinel Asia members help each other build
their capacities by making use of their respective experiences and expertise, was firstorganized by Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC) and Japan Aerospace
Exploration Agency (JAXA) as part of the Joint Project Team Meeting (JPTM) in
Bangkok in 2019, and this time, the ISRO and IWMI jointly took the lead to expand it
further for the benefit of Sentinel Asia members. The Sentinel Asia community willcontinue to support and foster capacity-building among its members through mutual
cooperation. Since drought is a large hydro-meteorological disaster causing hugeeconomic losses with cascading effects, the need for using science-based evidence
solutions for drought management has been well recognized. Therefore, the current
training program was quite relevant to deepen the participant’s understanding of thenature of drought and the scope for new technologies to minimize losses from suchdisaster. All the speakers in the inaugural session pointed out the need for organizing
drought monitoring and management related capacity building programs more
frequently for the benefit of Sentinel Asia member countries.

31

Chapter 5: Communication and Conference

5.1.2

Sentinel Asia Webinar “Space Technology for Flood Forecast Modelling”,
organized by ISRO and IWMI (27-28 October 2021)

Capacity building is a powerful tool in disaster risk reduction and a very importantelement towards building a disaster-risk-resilient society. The objective of the program
has been to appraise the participants from Sentinel Asia member countries/regions on
the potential and current status of EO technologies in operational flood forecast
modelling and spatial flood inundation modelling using hydrological and hydrodynamic
modelling techniques.
This webinar program has consisted of expert presentations/lectures and aninteractive session to make it more impactful. The scope for augmenting applications oftechnology, research data gaps, its limitations and information-sharing opportunities
were planned and documented for the future course of action towards promoting thetechnology for flood disaster risk reduction.
Moreover, this webinar brought together a total of around 80 experts andpractitioners from different Sentinel Asia member countries/regions. The inaugural
Session of the training Program included a welcome by Dr. V. V. Rao, Deputy Director,
Remote Sensing Applications, NRSC and brief remarks by (a) Mr. Miyoshi Takanori,
Sentinel Asia Secretariat, (b) Dr. Mark Smith, Director General, IWMI, and (c) Dr. Raj
Kumar, Director, NRSC. The 2-day webinar was conducted for the Asia Pacific region
during October 27-28, 2021. This is the second webinar conducted by ISRO in
association with IWMI in continuation to the Drought Webinar as part of the capacitybuilding event of this kind in which Sentinel Asia members mutually help build
capacity with their respective experience and expertise. In this inaugural session, it
was stressed that the Sentinel Asia community would continue to support and foster
mutual capacity building among members through cooperation. The inaugural session
was completed with a formal vote of thanks by Dr. K H V Durga Rao, NRSC, ISRO.

32

Chapter 5: Communication and Conference

5.1.3

Special Session on Sentinel Asia “Sentinel Asia for the ASEAN Region” underthe ACE Program (17 November 2021)“The AHA Centre Executive Program (ACE Program)” is an over 4-month training
course conducted by the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on
disaster management (AHA Centre) with a view to developing future leaders ofnational disaster management offices (NDMOs) in ASEAN countries. Started in 2014,
this year marks the 7th batch of the program. As its vision states, many of the alumni
of previous batches of ACE Program have been already representing and leading their
NDMOs.
Prof. Mizan Bisri of Kobe University (JPT member organization based in Japan) had
been appointed by the AHA Centre to facilitate liaison with Japanese-base resources
for the program and organized the “Japan Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Online
Course” from November 15 to 18, 2021, as part of the ACE Program. As part of theJapan DRR Online Course, an invitation was extended to the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
for organizing a dedicated joint session composed of speakers from Japan-based
Sentinel Asia JPT member organizations.
The joint session was held on November 17, 2021, with the title “Sentinel Asia: Spacebased disaster risk management support for the benefit of the Asia-Pacific region~Sentinel Asia for the ASEAN Region~”. More than 30 future young leaders from 24
NDMOs (as well as AHA Centre staff members) attended the session. Experts from the
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC), the University of Tokyo, and the
JAXA/Sentinel Asia Secretariat gave lectures and hands-on training courses. The
thematic topics of the training courses include “How to make Emergency Observation
Requests (EORs) to Sentinel Asia”; “How to utilize the Web-GIS system for obtaining
tangible damage information”; and “Extraction of building footprints from satellite
data.” At the end of the session, information on many other training opportunities by
JPT members including those who were not at the session was also introduced, andparticipants whose organizations are not yet JPT members were strongly encouraged
to make applications for membership.
The organizing team is convinced that, as the outcome of the session, participants
have become familiar with the significance and benefits (including ones to be upgraded

33

Chapter 5: Communication and Conferencein the future) of Sentinel Asia and how they can enjoy such benefits. Through this joint
session with the AHA Centre and Kobe University, the partnership between NDMOs of
ASEAN member states and Sentinel Asia has been further strengthened.

34

Chapter 5: Communication and Conference

5.1.4

27th Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum, APRSAF (30 November to 3
December 2021)

The 27th session of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF-27) was
held online from November 30 to December 3, 2021. The APRSAF-27 was co-organizedby the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), the Ministry of Education,
Culture, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan, and JAXA with the slogan“Expanding Space Innovation through Diverse Partnerships.”
On December 1, a dedicated Sentinel Asia session was organized and hosted by the
Sentinel Asia Secretariat in close collaboration with the Steering Committee members
as part of Satellite Applications for Societal Benefit Working Group (SAWG) of the
APRSAF-27. The session heard the following six presentations:(1) “Sentinel Asia - Trends in Emergency Observation Requests” (ADRC)(2) “Sentinel Asia Status Report” (JAXA)(3) “NSPO-NARLabs Engagement in Sentinel Asia” (NARLabs/NSPO)(4) “Integration of Satellite data and Crowdsourced information through a Mobile App
for the Sentinel Asia” (GIC/AIT)(5) “Development of Mirror Target Calibration for Optical Satellite Data” (Yamaguchi
University)(6) “Using Earth Observation to help Pacific countries managing disaster risk
reduction and response” (Pacific Earth Observation Council)

Through the Sentinel Asia session itself and its report by the SAWG co-chair in thehigh-level segment of the APRSAF (Plenary Session), the APRSAF-27 witnessed thedevelopment of the Sentinel Asia Step-3 system, led by the Technical Team composed of
GISTDA, NARLabs/NSPO with Academia Sinica, and JAXA. The APRSAF-27 notedthat the Sentinel Asia community had significantly upgraded its activities to address
the entire disaster management cycle, with contribution to the Sendai Framework in
mind. Such activities included the establishment of “Standard Operating Procedures
for making Emergency Observation Requests (EOR) to Sentinel Asia” in several
countries, a mobile application for sharing in-situ disaster information developed by
AIT, a project by Yamaguchi University aimed at enhancing the reliability of optical

35

Chapter 5: Communication and Conference

satellite data, and an initiative by the University of Tokyo to extract building maps
from satellite data. Finally, the APRSAF-27 appreciated that NARLabs/NSPO had
expressed their intention to provide Sentinel Asia with Formosat-8 satellite data after
its launch.

36Chapter 5: Communication and Conference

5.2. Documents, Press Releases and Papers

5.2.1

Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for making EORs in Myanmar,
Thailand, and Vietnam

The Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for making Emergency Observation
Requests (EOR) to Sentinel Asia were established in Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam
in March 2021. The establishment of SOPs is the achievement made through online
workshops aimed at better use of Sentinel Asia’s EOR mechanism for each country’s
following stakeholders.
- For Myanmar (February 4): DDM, DMH, AHA Centre, AIT, ADRC, and JAXA
- Thailand (February 18): ADPC, GISTDA, DDPM, AIT, ADRC, and JAXA
- Vietnam (February 1): MARD, MONRE, VAST/STI, AIT, ADRC, and JAXAThe common highlights of each SOP include:(i) the prior definition of organizations primarily responsible for making EORs in caseof natural disasters(ii) the prior definition of criteria under which the organizations (i) above will make
EORs on an “in principle” basis(iii) support by international organizations including ADRC to make EORs on behalf ofthe organizations (i) above, in case EORs are not made promptly or in an opportunity(iv) the easy and real-time provision of local information on the disaster via web-based
mobile application developed by AIT(v) the institutionalized use of Global Satellite Mapping of Precipitation (GSMaP) for
monitoring (reference information for making EORs)

In accordance with these SOPs, in case of natural disasters, stakeholders of eachcountry will be able to make emergency observation requests to Sentinel Asia promptly,
and utilize the information provided by Sentinel Asia for better response and recovery
in an interactive manner. Likewise, the Sentinel Asia community will be able toprovide better and effective support than before.
This is one of the good examples of Sentinel Asia which is mandated to address the37

Chapter 5: Communication and Conference

entire disaster management cycle, and it is a significant contribution to the Sendai
Framework Priority 4 as well. This joint achievement has significantly enhanced thevalue of Sentinel Asia.

38

Chapter 5: Communication and Conference

5.2.2

Commitment to the Sendai framework

The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 (SFDRR) was the firstmajor agreement of the post-2015 development agenda, and it provides Member Stateswith concrete actions to protect development gains from the risk of disaster. There are
four priorities for action to prevent new and reduce existing disaster risks: (i)Understanding disaster risk; (ii) Strengthening disaster risk governance to manage
disaster risk; (iii) Investing in disaster reduction for resilience, and; (iv) Enhancing
disaster preparedness for effective response, and to “Build Back Better” in recovery,
rehabilitation and reconstruction. Around the world, countries have begun to
implement initiatives based on the SFDRR.
The activities of Sentinel Asia were introduced as a contributor at the website of
SFDRR. This is adapted for the Priority 1 and Priority 4 of SFDRR. For instance,
publication of SOP, as mentioned in “5.2.1”, is adapted for Priority 4, “Enhancing
disaster preparedness for effective response and to ‘Build Back Better’ in recovery,
rehabilitation and reconstruction”.

Figure 23: SFDRR website
https://sendaicommitments.undrr.org/commitments/20210621_001

39

Chapter 6: Assessment of Sentinel Asia Operation

6.

Assessment of Sentinel Asia Operations

6.1. Analysis of Operational Performance
Figure 24 summarizes the number of days from the occurrence of a disaster to therequest for each disaster and their respective years. Overall, this shows that it took anumber of days from the first occurrence of the disaster to a request for the period
between 2011 and 2021.

4

2.7

Number of Days

3

2.7
2.4

2.3

2.0
1.7

2
2.1

1.6

2.6

2.1

1
1.3

0
2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

Figure 24: Number of Days Required from Disaster Occurrence to Request

40

Chapter 6: Assessment of Sentinel Asia Operation

Figure 25 shows the number of days that were required from the date the request is
received to activation. Overall, it took 0.06 days from request to activation in 2021.
This is an improvement over last year.

2

Number of Days

1.5
0.9
1.0
0.8

1
0.5

0.4

0.24
0.4

0.5

0.25

0.06

2020

2021

0
2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

Figure 25: Number of Days Required from Request to Activation

41

Chapter 6: Assessment of Sentinel Asia Operation

Figure 26 shows the average number of days required to provide archive satellite data
after activation (shown by the black line), and how often data could be provided
relative to the total number of requests (shown by the blue line).
Figure 26’s Archive Satellite Data indicates that the percentage of provisions
improved from 2016 to 2020. However, this figure in 2021 was totaling 76.5%. And theaverage number of days required rose to 4.0 days from last year’s 3.3.

8.0
89.3

100.0

Percentage

80.0

70.8

90.3

80.0

5.3

6.0

62.1
60.0

76.5

63.3
3.3

5.9

4.0

4.8
40.0

20.0

61.8
2.9

2.7

4.0

3.9
3.6

2.0

Number of Days

100.0 100.0

94.4

2.0

2.0

0.0

0.0
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Provision rate (provision/total requests)
Average time required for provision (days)

Figure 26: Average Number of Days Required to Provide Archive Satellite Data
and Activation Rate for Each Year

42

Chapter 6: Assessment of Sentinel Asia Operation

Figure 27 shows the average number of days required to provide post-disastersatellite data after activation (shown by the black line), and how often data could be
provided relative to the total number of requests (shown by the blue line).
Figure 27’s Satellite Data after Disaster shows that the percentage of provisions
increased sharply from 2014 onward, while the number of days required for data
provision has decreased in recent years. The number of average days required forprovision in 2021 was 2.9 days. And the average number of days required for provision
was around 3.2 days over the past 5 years, from 2017 to 2021.

12.0
9.8
95.8

84.2

94.1

88.9
80

100

80.6

93.1 93.3

8.8
Percentage

10.0
100
94.1

8.0

9.0

60

55.6

6.0
3.7

40

20

2.5

4.0
3.4

3.3

2.9

3.4 3.60

4.0

Number of Days

100

2.0
0.0

2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Provision rate (provision/total requests)
Average time required for provision (days)

Figure 27: Average Number of Days Required to Provide Satellite Data After
Disaster and Activation Rate for Each Year

43

Chapter 6: Assessment of Sentinel Asia Operation

Figure 28 shows the average number of days required to provide products after
activation (shown by the black line), and the how often data could be provided relative
to the total number of requests (shown by the blue line).
Figure 28 shows that the provision rate for products was 73.5% in 2021. Many DANs
supported the provision of products for each EOR. The average number of days
required for provision was 5.4 days in 2021 and 4.4 days over the past 5 years, from2017 to 2021.

30.0
76.0

25.9

82.8

18.0

Percentage

80.0

60.0

40.0

20.7
58.1

73.5

83.3

78.9

73.5

20.0

15.7

38.9

15.0
38.9

10.0
3.5

20.0

92.9

86.7

25.0

4.8

3.4

Number of Days

100.0

5.4

7.8

5.0
5.5

4.7

0.0

0.0
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Provision rate (provision/total requests)
Average time required for provision (days)

Figure 28: Average Number of Days Required to Provide Products and Activation
Rate for Each Year

44

Chapter 7: Conclusions

7. Conclusions

Since the start of 2007, we have accepted 423 EORs and activated 376. Sentinel Asia
activities were particularly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic this year, but by taking
advantage of remote sensing technology, Sentinel Asia were able to contribute theirsupport by providing effective data even in times of disaster. And some JPT members
conducted several online workshops for strengthen Sentinel Asia network, as shown in
5.1.1 and 5.1.2. Also, Sentinel Asia started to contribute for the Sendai Framework for
Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 (SFDRR), as shown in 5.2.1 and 5.2.2. It is expectedthat Sentinel Asia forms a strong relationship with the community of DRR.

Lastly, Sentinel Asia accepted 34 EORs that were submitted, and 34 EORs wereactivated in 2021. The following points are conclusive statements based on activities in
2021.
・In 2021, Around 67.6% of the EORs were related to floods.

・The “Number of Days Required from Disaster Occurrence to Request” was 1.7 daysin 2021. It was less than 2 days for two years in a row.

・Ten (10) out of thirty-four (34) Sentinel Asia activations were escalated to the IDCs
in 2021. This is the highest number in SA’s history. Project managers of these
escalated IDCs were nominated from JPT members and ADRC members (e.g., AIT,DMC, JAXA, PHIVOLCS, and Yamaguchi University).

・

Through 34 EORs, DANs and DPNs have been provided with a lot of data set forrequestors and utilized for their DRR activities. Thus, Sentinel Asia madecontributions for JPT members during disaster situations amidst the COVID-19
pandemic by taking advantage of the remote sensing technology.

45

blank** January 2021 News from Sentinel Asia Project Office **- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *Topics:
1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters Occurring in January 2021
2. [Interview] Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC)
3. Information
4. How to send Emergency Observation Request
5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters Occurring in January 2021. (as of 25
January)(1) Earthquake in Indonesia
A magnitude 6.2 earthquake occurred in Majene, Indonesia on 15 January 2021.
National Board for Disaster Management (BNPB) reported that at least 42 people(34 in Mamuju and 8 in Majane) died, 189 people in Mamuju Regency wereseriously injured, around 637 people suffered minor injured and 15,000 residents
had been displaced. (https://www.bnpb.go.id/berita/-update-sebanyak-189-orang-dirawat-dikabupaten-mamuju-pascagempa-m6-2-)

Indonesian National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) made an
Emergency Observation Request (EOR) to Sentinel Asia on 15 January. This EOR
was escalated to the International Disaster Charter. LAPAN assumed the role ofProject Manager (PM) for this Disasters Charter activation. Among Data Provider
Nodes (DPNs), Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Mohammed Bin
Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), National Applied Research Laboratories (NARL)
and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) provided their observation data.
Among Data Analysis Nodes (DANs), Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS)
provided their VAPs. The information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia isavailable from the following link.
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210115ID.html

Satellite image (KhalifaSat) provided by MBRSC

Satellite image (ALOS-2 PALSAR-2, L1.1) provided by JAXA

Product by EOS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *2. [Interview]
The Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), founded in 2006, is home to theUnited Arab Emirates’ National Space Program. MBRSC builds and operates earth
observation satellites, offering imaging and data analysis services. MBRSC has been amember of Sentinel Asia since 2017. In addition to its contribution to supply its
observation data as Data Provider Node (DPN), recently MBRSC has been supporting
Emergency Observation Requests (EORs) as Data Analysis Node (DAN) as well, by
providing many value-added products.
Commemorating MBRSC’s first provision of KhalifaSat data in August 2020, theSentinel Asia Secretariat (Dr. Shiro Kawakita, Mr. Takanori Miyoshi and staff
members) interviewed Ms. Alia Mohammad Al Mekhyat and Ms. Shaikha Ahmed
Albesher of MBRSC for their contribution to the Sentinel Asia.

Sentinel Asia Secretariat
On behalf of the secretariat, I warmly thank you for giving us this opportunity tointerview you concerning your contribution and support for Sentinel Asia. Looking backon the history of the partnership between MBRSC and Sentinel Asia, we could cite themilestone event, “the Steering Committee (SC) joint mission to MBRSC” in 2017 rightafter MBRSC joined Sentinel Asia as a DPN member. Colleagues from Asian Disaster
Reduction Center (ADRC), Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), Geo-Informatics andSpace Technology Development Agency (GISTDA), and JAXA visited you. Since then,
MBRSC has been supporting Sentinel Asia activities, by providing Dubaisat-2 images
and a lot of fruitful input as a SC member. I remember on the occasion of SC joint
mission, MBRSC colleagues kindly showed us around facilities, such as a ground control
room and a clean room in which a flight model of KhalifaSat was being assembled. After
that, it was successfully launched with JAXA’s Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite
IBUKI-2 (GOSAT-2) on H-IIA launch vehicle. Then, at the SC meeting in June last year
you expressed that you would register KhalifaSat as part of Sentinel Asia’s constellation,and then you did indeed provide the image! The first KhalifaSat image provided lastAugust was so vivid and enabled us to capture the situation clearly and to support therequester. We are really pleased to see how the partnership has been strengthened and
we are grateful for your dedicated commitment and support. Today, we would like tohear from you more detailed information on the data provision of KhalifaSat and yourmotivation.

MBRSC
We appreciate the nice words, as well as we are glad you visited us to witness theassembly of our third and most advanced satellite, KhalifaSat, and now after the
successful launch, we are working with data acquired by KhalifaSat.
Firstly, speaking of Sentinel Asia, we are much honored to be part of this noble initiative.
It is a great honor to help humankind by mitigating impacts of disasters using our spacebased resources, whether through our satellite imagery or our value added products.
From our side, I can assure you that our team has expanded from your last visit, which
you can see on with the OPTEMIS system. In fact, we have updated the plan and theoperation status. Thus, currently, once we receive any emergency observation requests,
such requests are immediately directed to our mission planner. Then, the mission
planner will immediately task the satellite to capture the area affected by the disaster.
Of course, that depends on the availability of the satellite such as where the satellite isin orbit, as well as on the priority list we have. Subsequently, mission planners will place
the order and task the satellite, whether it is using KhalifaSat or DubaiSat-2, and goahead with the imaging whenever it is applicable. Once the satellites are tasked andthe image is captured and downloaded successfully, the task will be handed over toanother colleague at our Image Processing Section. Once the image is processed, it will
be uploaded on the OPTEMIS server for Sentinel Asia colleagues so that they canbenefit from the image, and distribute it to the concerned party. Previously, we had adifferent approach, it was one person handling all those tasks. Now as we have
explained, we have one person dedicated to a specific task in order to simplify and speed

up the process. And we believe it has developed and improved our contribution andparticipation in the Sentinel Asia initiative.

Sentinel Asia Secretariat
We are really impressed that you have upgraded the whole workflow for Sentinel Asia.
Now we can expect further support for the Sentinel Asia community. In terms of the
EOR operation procedure including the system, is there anything that the secretariat
should improve in order to facilitate your response to EORs?

MBRSC
Honestly, when we started using the system, it was an exceptionally smooth process.
We even mentioned that in several emails to the team from Sentinel Asia, the system issuper clear and simple. Uploading any imagery is quite simple and very easy, especiallyafter the latest update. We could even demonstrate the usage of the system to our teammembers very easily. It is indeed efficient to work using this system. From our end,
there is only one matter that we need to take into consideration, which is cloud coverage.
In fact, since our satellites are optical satellites we find it difficult to provide data fordisasters such us flooding with cloud coverage. Therefore, although we always try to
respond to Sentinel Asia’s EORs and indeed we do behind the scene tasking, it is notalways that we are able to upload data on the system in such cases.

Sentinel Asia Secretariat
It is great to hear that MBRSC always tries to respond to Sentinel Asia’s EORs, even if
the DubaiSat and KhalifaSat data are not uploaded to OPTEMIS. Thank you very muchagain for your outstanding support to Sentinel Asia EORs. MBRSC satellites are always
useful because the resolutions are high. As in the case of the recent EORs for Beirut andIzmir which you provided KhalifaSat images, the Sentinel Asia community would reallyappreciate your support. At the same time, as you mentioned, for optical satellites, cloud
coverage is always a challenge. In this regard, in order to have more supports from yourside, perhaps we could ask requesters to narrow down the area. In many cases, the areaof interest stated by the requesters may be too large, and it might be difficult for you totask under cloud-free environment, but if requesters are able to narrow down thespecific area of interest, and then it will become easier for you to proceed. Would that
work?

MBRSC
Definitely, that will help us. If we have cloud coverage in the scene, we can specify theexact area in which the disaster occurred at. In addition, we can either upload the image
even if it had cloud coverage, it might be of benefit. If the image is 90% cloudy but
remaining 10% area is not affected and could benefit, and leave it up to end user to asses.

We hope this step will improve our contribution further.

Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Speaking of MBRSC’s support, recently, MBRSC has been active not only as a DPN but
also as a DAN. Could you tell us how you are working on generating value added
products?

MBRSC
MBRSC was strongly motivated to contribute as a DAN member, and worked on placing
a new process in order to participate as a DAN. Based on the requests placed on thesystem, we search and order the most suitable available data, and start on our analysis
process to provide products as fast as possible.
This participation is helping us in utilizing present data sources, and developing
MBRSC’s geospatial analysis expertize to provide critical information for disaster
stricken areas. We aim to provide an analytical assessment of disasters, such as floods
or earthquakes, in order assess in taking vital and effective decisions to reduce or
eliminate any fatal risks.

Sentinel Asia Secretariat
In terms of your activity as a DAN, I remember that the Director of MBRSC mentioned,
during our joint visit mission to MBRSC three years ago, that MBRSC would like tocontribute to EOR as DAN as well in the future. Now you are indeed supporting EOR
as DAN, for which we are grateful to you.

MBRSC
Three years ago, we had only one person working on value added products. We have
expanded the team and a member joined the team to support. So now after three years,
we are pleased to further support Sentinel Asia, as both a DPN and DAN.

Sentinel Asia Secretariat
As you know, Sentinel Asia is not a small community. We have many agencies from thewest to east. Do you have any expectation for future cooperation with the Sentinel Asiaand its members?

MBRSC
From our side, of course, we are honored to support the Sentinel Asia for as many years
as possible. And we hope for further partnerships and collaborations that will help andassist Sentinel Asia and to mitigate the effects of natural disasters, and hopefully wewould like to help reduce any post disaster damage on humankind. Also, we will do ourbest to further support such great initiative.

Additionally, we have a new satellite currently under development, named “MBZ-Sat”.
Although we will provide you with the further detailed information later once
determined, we can tell you now that the satellite will be with an improved Image
Capture resolution. MBZ-Sat will also have an improved performance regarding dataprocessing and downloads.

Sentinel Asia Secretariat
We are really excited to hear that. Even current Dubaisat-2 and KhalifaSat provide very
high-resolution images and with more enhanced capability, MBZ-Sat will be further
benefit the Sentinel Asia community. Thank you very much for your kind offer. Finally,
we thank you once again for giving us the opportunity to interview you. We are pleased
with and really grateful for your support for Sentinel Asia.

Alia Mohammad Almekhyat

Shaikha Ahmed Albesher- Officer -- Engineer -Business Development Section,

Remote Sensing Applications Unit, Remote

Remote Sensing Department

Sensing Department- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *3. [Information]
Sentinel Asia has uploaded the list of "ALL" emergency observation responses (over300!) on the Sentinel Asia web portal.
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/EmergencyObservation.html
You can browse, all VAPs (estimated flood maps and others provided by DANs), andthumbnails of satellite images on the site.
It would be great if they could help you understand our work, operation and efforts.

- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *4. How to send Emergency Observation Request
JPT member organizations are entitled to send Emergency Observation Request(EOR) for disasters in the Asia-Pacific region.
Please refer to https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html
EOR Order Desk:
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)
HP: http://www.adrc.asia/
E-mail: sarequest@adrc.asia
FAX: +81-78-262-5546,
TEL: +81-78-262-5540- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMISThe Sentinel Asia launched new operation system, OPTEMIS. Please refer to thewebsite how to create the account of OPTEMIS. https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+==
Copyright 2021 the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Sentinel Asia Project OfficeSatellite Applications and Operations Center (SAOC)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Ochanomizu Sola City, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
E-mail: Z-SENTINEL.ASIA@ml.jaxa.jp
TEL: +81-3-6435-6785
FAX: +81-3-5777-1580

** February 2021 News from Sentinel Asia Project Office **- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *Topics:
1. [News] Latest Emergency Observations of Disasters
2. Information
3. How to send Emergency Observation Request
4. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *1. [News] Latest Emergency Observation of Disasters (as of 25 February)(1) Earthquake in Indonesia
A magnitude 6.2 Earthquake occurred in Majene, Indonesia on 15 January 2021.
At least eight people died, 637 were injured and 15,000 residents had been
displaced, according to the country's National Board for Disaster Management(BNPB). Also, in the neighboring Mamuju area, an additional 26 deaths werereported(https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/14/asia/indonesia-sulawesi-earthquake-intlhnk/index.html)
Indonesian National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) made an
Emergency Observation Request (EOR) to Sentinel Asia on 15 January. This EOR
was escalated to the International Disaster Charter. LAPAN assumed the role ofProject Manager (PM) for this Disasters Charter activation. Among Data Provider
Nodes (DPNs), Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Centre for Remote
Imaging, Sensing and Processing (CRISP), Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre(MBRSC) and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) provided theirobservation data. Among Data Analysis Nodes (DANs), Earth Observatory ofSingapore (EOS) provided their VAPs. The information on the latest response by
Sentinel Asia is available from the following link.
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210115ID.html

Satellite image (TeLEOS-1) provided by CRISP

Satellite image (KhalifaSat) provided by MBRSC

Value Added Product by EOS(2) Flood, Landslide and Strom in Philippines
Tropical Storm "Auring" (international name: Dujuan) hit the Philippines on 21
February 2021, which induced floods and landslides. CNN Philippines reported
that 2,000 families were already evacuated, and rice fields in the town were also
submerged in flood, with damage to agriculture estimated.
Manila Observatory (MO) made an Emergency Observation Request (EOR) to
Sentinel Asia on 21 February. This EOR was escalated to the International
Disaster Charter. MO assumed the role of Project Manager (PM) for this Disasters
Charter activation. The information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia isavailable from the following link.
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210221PH.html- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *2.[Information]
Sentinel Asia has uploaded the list of "ALL" emergency observation responses (over300!) on the Sentinel Asia web portal.
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/EmergencyObservation.html
You can browse, all VAPs (estimated flood maps and others provided by DANs), andthumbnails of satellite images on the site.
It would be great if they could help you understand our work, operation and efforts.
- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *3. How to send Emergency Observation Request
JPT member organizations are entitled to send Emergency Observation Request

(EOR) for disasters in the Asia-Pacific region.
Please refer to https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html
EOR Order Desk:
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)
HP: http://www.adrc.asia/
E-mail: sarequest@adrc.asia
FAX: +81-78-262-5546,
TEL: +81-78-262-5540- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *4. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMISThe Sentinel Asia launched new operation system, OPTEMIS. Please refer to thewebsite how to create the account of OPTEMIS. https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+==
Copyright 2021 the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Sentinel Asia Project OfficeSatellite Applications and Operations Center (SAOC)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Ochanomizu Sola City, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
E-mail: Z-SENTINEL.ASIA@ml.jaxa.jp
TEL: +81-3-6435-6785
FAX: +81-3-5777-1580

** March 2021 News from Sentinel Asia Project Office **- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *Topics:
1. [News] Additional Information for Flood, Landslide and Strom in Philippines
2.

Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for making EORs to Sentinel Asia established!

3. Information
4. How to send Emergency Observation Request
5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *1. [News] Latest Emergency Observation of Disasters (as of 29 March)(1) (Additional Information)Flood, Landslide and Strom in Philippines(Outline which already informed as February 2021 News)
Tropical Storm "Auring" (international name: Dujuan) hit the Philippines on 21
February 2021, which induced floods and landslides. CNN Philippines reported that
2,000 families were already evacuated, and rice fields in the town were also
submerged in flood, with damage to agriculture estimated.
Manila Observatory (MO) made an Emergency Observation Request (EOR) to
Sentinel Asia on 21 February. This EOR was escalated to the International Disaster
Charter. MO assumed the role of Project Manager (PM) for this Disasters Charter
activation. The information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available fromthe following link.
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210221PH.html(Additional Information)
Among Data Provider Nodes (DPNs), Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO),
National Applied Research Laboratories (NARL) and Japan Aerospace Exploration
Agency (JAXA) provided their observation data. Among Data Analysis Nodes (DANs),
Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), Manila Observatory (MO) provided their VAPs.

Satellite image (RESOURCESAT-2 AWiFS) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL

Satellite image (ALOS-2 PALSAR-2) provided by JAXA

Value Added Product by AIT

Value Added Product by MO
https://disasterscharter.org/documents/10180/9180185/vap-804-1product.pdf- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *2. Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for making EORs to Sentinel Asia established!
The Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for making Emergency Observation Request (EOR) to
Sentinel Asia were established in Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam in March 2021. The
establishment of SOPs is the achievement made through online workshops aimed at better use of
Sentinel Asia’s EOR mechanism for each country’s following stakeholders.
-

For Myanmar (4 February): DDM, DMH, AHA Centre, AIT, ADRC, and JAXA
Thailand (18 February): ADPC, GISTDA, DDPM, AIT, ADRC, and JAXA
Viet Nam (1 February): MARD, MONRE, VAST/STI, AIT, ADRC, and JAXAThe common highlights of each SOP include, inter alia,(i) the prior definition of organizations primarily responsible for making EORs in case of natural
disasters(ii) the prior definition of criteria under which the organizations (i) above will make EORs on “inprinciple” basis(iii) support by international organizations including ADRC to make EORs on behalf of theorganizations (i) above, in case EORs are not made promptly or in an opportune tine(iv) the easy and real-time provision of local information on the disaster via web-based mobile
application developed by AIT(v) the institutionalized use of Global Satellite Mapping of Precipitation (GSMaP) for monitoring(reference information for making EORs)
In accordance with these SOPs, in case of natural disasters, stakeholders of each country will be able
to make emergency observation requests to Sentinel Asia promptly, and utilize the information
provided by Sentinel Asia for better response and recovery in an interactive manner. Likewise, theSentinel Asia community will be able to provide better and effective support than before.
This is one of the good examples of Sentinel Asia which is mandated to address the entire disastermanagement cycle, and it is a significant contribution to the Sendai Framework Priority 4 (Enhancing
disaster preparedness for effective response and to “Build Back Better” in recovery, rehabilitation andreconstruction) as well. This joint achievement has significantly enhanced the value of Sentinel Asia.

Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

Mobile application developed by AIT・Web link: https://arcg.is/1HWGWX0・QR Code:- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *3.[Information]
Sentinel Asia has uploaded the list of "ALL" emergency observation responses (over300!) on the Sentinel Asia web portal.
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/EmergencyObservation.html
You can browse, all VAPs (estimated flood maps and others provided by DANs), andthumbnails of satellite images on the site.
It would be great if they could help you understand our work, operation and efforts.
- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *4. How to send Emergency Observation Request
JPT member organizations are entitled to send Emergency Observation Request(EOR) for disasters in the Asia-Pacific region.
Please refer to https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html
EOR Order Desk:
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)
HP: http://www.adrc.asia/
E-mail: sarequest@adrc.asia
FAX: +81-78-262-5546,
TEL: +81-78-262-5540- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMISThe Sentinel Asia launched new operation system, OPTEMIS. Please refer to thewebsite how to create the account of OPTEMIS. https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+==
Copyright 2021 the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Sentinel Asia Project OfficeSatellite Applications and Operations Center (SAOC)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)

Ochanomizu Sola City, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
E-mail: Z-SENTINEL.ASIA@ml.jaxa.jp
TEL: +81-3-6435-6785
FAX: +81-3-5777-1580

** April 2021 News from Sentinel Asia Project Office **- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *Topics:
1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters
2. Interview
3. Sentinel Asia Annual Report 2019 Released
4. Information
5. How to Send an Emergency Observation Request
6. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters (As of 27 April)(1) Flood, Landslide in Indonesia
Tropical Cyclone Seroja hit southeast Indonesia on 4 April 2021, which induced floods
and landslides. According to data from the National Agency for Disaster
Countermeasure (BNPB) Operation Control Center, as of 5 April, a total of 2,019
families, or 8,424 people, took refuge and 1,083 families, or 2,683 people, were affectedby the disaster.
The Indonesian National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) made an
Emergency Observation Request (EOR) to Sentinel Asia on 4 April. This EOR was
escalated to the International Disaster Charter. LAPAN assumed the role of ProjectManager (PM) for this Disasters Charter activation. Among Data Provider Nodes(DPNs), the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), the Geo-Informatics andSpace Technology Development Agency (GISTDA), the National Applied ResearchLaboratories (NARL) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) provided
observation data. Among Data Analysis Nodes (DANs), the Earth Observatory ofSingapore (EOS) provided its Value-Added Product (VAP). Information on the latest
response by Sentinel Asia is available from the following link.
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210404ID.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA.

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Value Added Product by EOS(2) Flood, Landslide in Timor-Leste
Tropical Cyclone Seroja hit Timor-Leste on 4 April 2021, which induced floods andlandslides. According to data from the National Agency for Disaster, the latest official
figures (as of 7 April) from the Secretariat of State for Civil Protection, a total of 2,375
households--or 9,779 people--were in the 18 official evacuation facilities in Dili. There
were many more displaced in informal evacuation sites across the city. A total of 42
fatalities (including 13 people who were still missing and presumed dead) have beenrecorded.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on
4 April. This EOR was escalated to the International Disasters Charter. Among DPNs,
ISRO, NARL and JAXA provided observation data. In addition, the Mohammed Bin
Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) and and the Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing andProcessing (CRISP) have planned to conduct emergency observations . Among DANs,
the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) and RIKEN provided their VAPs. Informationon the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available from the following link.
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210404TL.html

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2A) provided by ISRO

Value Added Product by AITValue Added Product by RIKEN

- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *2. Interview
In 2019, Sentinel Asia introduced its new disaster data provision system called“Sentinel Asia Step-3 system”. Sentinel Asia Step-3 system is a joint project by GISTDA
and NARLabs (NSPO) with Academia Sinica, and JAXA. Its integral component
dedicated to Emergency Observation Requests is called the “Operation Planning Tool
for Earth-Observation Mission,” or “OPTEMIS”. OPTEMIS was developed by GISTDA.
The Sentinel Asia community witnessed the official launch of OPTEMIS during the
Joint Project Team Meeting on 12 November 2019, hosted by ADPC in Bangkok,
Thailand.
The Sentinel Asia Secretariat interviewed Mr. Wasanchai VONGSANTIVANICH and
Mr. Panupat HORMA with the GISTDA OPTEMIS team regarding its development
history and the way forward.

Inauguration Ceremony

Training on the use of OPTEMIS

chaired by Dr. Pakorn Apaphant(by Mr. Wasanchai VONGSANTIVANICH(GISTDA then- Board of Directors,

and Mr. Panupat HORMA)

current Executive Director)

Secretariat
Could you tell us about your motivation for developing OPTEMIS for the Sentinel Asia
community?
GISTDA
About four or five years ago, I was working as satellite systems engineer and had a lotof chances to participate in many meetings and projects among different space agencies
in the region. Through those experiences, I came to think that one government could
not do everything alone since it is not sustainable in the long run. Satellite is aninternational platform by itself, even though many emerging space nations spend hugeamount of budget for satellite program to mainly monitor their resource domestically,
however the satellite orbits and overlooks everywhere around the world. With this fact,
it would be great if we could find the optimal and efficient way for different countries towork together and encourage them to share their space resource to be able to use it atfull potential. Thus, in GISTDA, I initiated a project to develop a mission planningsystem for multi-satellite operators whose objective is to create something thatfunctions automatically to collect all factors and make use of satellites resource
effectively. After we had finished the first phase of this project, Dr. Chaowalit
SILPATHONG, who was our deputy director at that time and was also involved in
Sentinel Asia, saw that there were links between our project and Sentinel Asia, so heinvited me to the Sentinel Asia meeting. As you know, Sentinel Asia is a regional
platform to coordinate and use Earth observation data for disasters in the Asia-Pacificregion with the full chain end-to-end members from satellite operators, data analysis
nodes up to the users. Coincidentally, what we want to do is to present a way in whichpeople can use space technology more efficiently, so, from this perspective, Sentinel Asia
was a great opportunity for us to bring our work to support regional collaborations andto bring the use of space to people which is our main goal. I believe this might also be apart to strengthen national space partnership in the Asia-Pacific. Since then, with thegreen light from Sentinel Asia steering committee, we have been continuously
developing and improving OPTEMIS system to be one of the tools of Sentinel Asia toenhance the collaborations among the members. This is the story behind how and why
I started to get involved in Sentinel Asia and OPTEMIS.
Secretariat
Have you encountered any challenges in this OPTEMIS project?
GISTDAOf course, COVID-19 is one of the main challenges for everyone, however with the strong
teamwork of Sentinel Asia technical steering committee, we can keep up our efforts andcontinue our work and improvements for Sentinel Asia at the same pace as before. More

importantly, since we are developing IT systems for different national users, we must
concern and be careful about cyber security standards and practices. We could say that
we have learned a lot and enjoy a lot on working on this project. Despite that GISTDA
is now undergoing reorganization and the sponsorship for the project is being paused
for a while, our research team is still voluntarily working and eager to continue tocontribute to Sentinel Asia. We are fully committed to supporting and being a part togrow this meaningful Sentinel Asia collaboration.
Secretariat
How is it like for you to cooperate with Sentinel Asia members on the development of
OPTEMIS?
GISTDA
Sentinel Asia technical team (JAXA, NSPO) is like our family, we enjoy a lot working
with JAXA, Kawakita-san and his team always provides us kind support. Also, we havea remarkably close partnership with NARLabs/NSPO (Bo Chen, Jer Ling, Eric andEddy) on the development of OPTEMIS and learned a lot from them. However, I would
like to add that we feel close and eager to work with everyone in Sentinel Asia. Sentinel
Asia community is fantastic and we feel like everyone is caring for each other, this might
be because the aim of Sentinel Asia is to work together to support disaster relief. It is
obvious from many past experiences that Sentinel Asia could be the first steppingstone
and this great collaborative scheme could continue and extend to other domains as well.
Secretariat
Now every Sentinel Asia member uses your system.
GISTDAWe are immensely proud and keen to continue to contribute to Sentinel Asia, trying tobring space closer to people and to bring technology to help people. That is one of our
motivations to improve OPTEMIS.
Secretariat
Do you have any future plans for OPTEMIS?
GISTDA
Data Provider Nodes (DPNs) and Data Analysis Nodes (DAN) are already using thesystem and we continuously develop and improve according to their comments andrecommendations. For future modules, I think there are still rooms to improve, and wewill be able to make it better. One thing we want to improve is to expand the benefit topeople in affected areas and to enhance satellite data with more useful information. Weare now considering a project implementing more sensors, including drones, and crowdsourcing data for disaster management. We have tried this in Thailand for wildfire
applications, and if this is successful, we are willing to contribute and open it to every
member. This is a matter of data fusion and AI, so it might be beyond Sentinel Asia, but
this is very interesting point for us because satellite data on its own is sometimes notenough.
Secretariat
How would you like to enhance the collaboration with Sentinel Asia in the future?
GISTDAWe believe that the more effectively and timely Sentinel Asia provides information forassists disaster response in the affected area, the stronger the community it will be. For
our part, we could potentially assist in terms of providing a useful multilateral platform
to support everyone to work together closely and dynamically. In addition to the goodcollaboration, we should consider making this community sustainable, this could bedone through getting involve participation from every member to make Sentinel Asia
community strong in the long run.

Mr. Wasanchai VONGSANTIVANICH (right) and Mr. Panupat HORMA (left)
at the Sentinel Asia café exhibition corner during the JPTM 2019 hosted by ADPC

- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *3. Sentinel Asia Annual Report 2019 Released
Sentinel Asia Annual Report 2019 has been published on the Sentinel Asia website.
(https://sentinel-asia.org/reports/Reports/SA_Annual_Report_2019.pdf). Activities by
each of the organizations of Sentinel Asia are covered in the report. It is highly
appreciated that the report could be published thanks to your support on behalf of theorganizations’ sessions of the Joint Project Team Meeting (JPTM), even although JPTM
itself had to be canceled due to the difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *4. How to send Emergency Observation Request
JPT member organizations are entitled to send Emergency Observation Request (EOR)
for disasters in the Asia-Pacific region. Please refer to https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html.
EOR Order Desk:
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)
HP: http://www.adrc.asia/
E-mail: sarequest@adrc.asia
FAX: +81-78-262-5546,
TEL: +81-78-262-5540- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMISThe Sentinel Asia launched new operation system, OPTEMIS. Please refer to thewebsite how to create the account of OPTEMIS. https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html

+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+=
Copyright 2021 the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Sentinel Asia Project OfficeSatellite Applications and Operations Center (SAOC)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Ochanomizu Sola City, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
E-mail: Z-SENTINEL.ASIA@ml.jaxa.jp
TEL: +81-3-6435-6785
FAX: +81-3-5777-1580

** May 2021 News from Sentinel Asia Project Office **- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *Topics:
1. [News] Additional Information on Floods, Landslides and Storm in Timor-Leste
2. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters
3. Interview - Dr. Giriraj Amarnath, International Water Management Institute(IWMI)
4. How to Send an Emergency Observation Request
5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *1. [News] Additional Information on Floods, Landslides and Storm in Timor-Leste(Outline was given in the April 2021 Newsletter)
Tropical Cyclone Seroja hit Timor-Leste on 4 April 2021, which induced floods andlandslides. According to the United Nations, latest official figures showed that a
total of 33,835 households (as of 19 May) have been affected by the floods across thecountry and fatalities counts 44 (as of 21 May).
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) made an Emergency
Observation Request (EOR) to Sentinel Asia on 4 April. This EOR was escalated to
the International Disasters Charter. Among Data Provider Nodes (DPNs), theCentre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing (CRISP), the Geo-Informatics
and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA), the Indian Space Research
Organisation (ISRO), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the
National Applied Research Laboratories (NARL) provided observation data. Among
Data Analysis Nodes (DANs), the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) and RIKEN
provided their Value Added Products (VAPs). Information on the latest response by
Sentinel Asia is available from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210404TL.html

Satellite image (TELEOS-1) provided by CRISP

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *2. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters (as of 28 May)
(1) Landslides and Mudflows in Tajikistan
Landslides and Mudflows occurred in Tajikistan on 11 May 2021. According toRadio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (RFE / RL), at least 9 people died. Houses andinfrastructures such as roads and bridges were damaged in 15 districts.
(https://rus.ozodi.org/a/31250786.html)
The Central Asian Institute of Applied Geosciences (CAIAG) made an EOR to
Sentinel Asia on 14 May. Among DPNs, JAXA and NARL provided theirobservation data. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available
from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210511TJ.html

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL
(2) Floods and Storm in India
Cyclone Tauktae attacked several states on the western coast of India on 17 May
2021. New Delhi Television Limited (NDTV) said that at least 6 people were killed,
and several people were injured in Maharashtra. Eight people died in cycloneaffected coastal Karnataka. Thousands of people were evacuated in Gujarat,
Kerala, Daman and Diu.
(https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/cyclone-tauktae-live-updates-very-severecyclonic-storm-likely-to-intensify-further-warns-weather-office-2443064)
ISRO made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 14 May. Among DPNs, GISTDA, JAXA and
NARL provided observation data. Information on the latest response by Sentinel
Asia is available from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210517IN.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL

(3) Cyclone YAAS in India

Cyclone YAAS attacked West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar and Bengal of India on 27 and
28 May 2021. The Times of India and ABC News said that 2 people died, and morethan 1.1 million people had evacuated.
The Time of India
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/cyclone-yaas-live-tracking-odishawest-bengal-brace-for-severe-cyclonic-storm/liveblog/82962051.cms
ABC News
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-26/india-cyclone-yaas-causes-massevacuation/100168472
ISRO made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 26 May. Among DPNs, JAXA provided
observation data. In addition, NARL has planned to conduct emergency
observations. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available fromthe following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210526IN.html

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA
- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *3. Interview
3. Interview - Dr. Giriraj Amarnath, International Water Management Institute(IWMI)

This interview is also posted on the Sentinel Asia Website:
https://sentinel-asia.org/interview/interview.html
The International Water Management Institute, or IWMI, is a research-for-development (R4D) organization, with offices in 13 countries and a global network ofscientists operating in more than 30 countries, and is a member of the Consultative
Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), whose mandate is “a watersecure world,” and which addresses the water and land management challenges facedby poor communities in developing countries. IWMI promotes demand-based
innovative and scientifically tested water management solutions for sustainable
development and is a longtime member of Sentinel Asia. Dr. Giriraj Amarnath fromIWMI has been one of the leading supporters of Sentinel Asia and won the World
Geospatial Excellence Award in 2020. The Sentinel Asia Secretariat interviewed Dr.
Amarnath about how he has worked with Sentinel Asia and his future plans in the
Sentinel Asia community.

Dr. Giriraj Amarnath, Research Group Leader
Water Risks to Development and Resilience-(Sentinel Asia Secretariat) Please introduce yourself to the readers of Sentinel Asiaand tell us about your experiences with Sentinel Asia:(Dr. Giriraj Amarnath)Thank you for this great opportunity to share my memories about Sentinel Asia. I
recall my first involvement was back in 2009 while I was working for the International
Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) in Nepal. At that time, I
attended my first Sentinel Asia meeting and I developed a great interest in matters,
including the establishment of emergency observation and data transmission via
WINDS satellite* communications for rapid satellite data access. Then, I moved to
IWMI in 2011 and strengthened the use of space technology in Disaster Risk
Reduction with input and support from Sentinel Asia and development partners.
Basically, I lead a research group on water risk and disaster recently, and look after
programs managing floods and droughts in Asia and Africa.

* WINDS, or Wideband InterNetworking engineering test and Demonstration
Satellite, is a satellite to demonstrate high-speed internet technology operated by
JAXA from 2008 till 2019.

-

How do you think Sentinel Asia can contribute to regional collaboration,
particularly in terms of flood management?

When we look back some years ago, Sentinel Asia implemented Step 1 and then Step2.
This is when the Flood Working Group was established. At that time, many colleagues
led this initiative as their responsibility and brought best practices from member
states in Asia and the Pacific. We have to thank the Asia-Pacific Regional Space
Agencies Forum (APRSAF) for this excellent initiative to bring together diverse
stakeholders. Through Sentinel Asia, we can present best practices on disaster risk
management at Sentinel Asia’s JPT (Joint Project Team) meeting, which can help
countries prepare and respond to crisis management. Though the initiatives arevoluntary, they promote innovative knowledge products and tools among member
states in building resilience and managing climate shocks.

-

Could you tell us about the current activities and responsibilities of IWMI?

IWMI is basically a water management institute that promotes a water-secure world.
Crucial areas we work on in our strategic program are Water, Climate Change, andResilience (WCCR), to promote improved climate change adaptation and mitigation
with greater resilience to natural disasters. The projects we lead in Africa and Asia
look at four pillars of Disaster Risk Management, that is: Prevention, Preparedness,
Response, and Recovery, and guiding countries in strategic climate investments. This
is where risk transfer comes into the picture. We have several projects looking at how
we understand the risk, and what levels of disaster risk governance are criticallyimportant to help communities manage the climate crisis. We also look at areas of how
development partners like the World Bank and the Asia Development Bank could
promote evidence-based investment in disaster resilience. In a way, we look at
consolidating research priorities across disaster risk management and aligning theimplementation steps of the Sendai Framework. For example, the project in Sri Lanka
looks at how climate adaptations are critically important in managing droughts andfloods among smallholder farmers and building a resilient economy through the use ofopen access data and disruptive technologies.

-

IWMI covers a broad area of water issues. Could you tell us more details and whatis the main application of your activities?

As an example, in South Asia, we have laid a foundation for promoting and integratinga drought management program, and innovations in promoting drought monitoring
and an early warning system using multi-mission satellite data aided by the cloud
platform. We use subseasonal and short-term weather forecast data from Global
Forecast System (GFS) data of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA) and the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) to provide drought
forecasts. Then, we use satellite data such as MODIS data from NASA’s Terra andAqua satellites and Sentinel satellite images from the European Copernicus
Programme to monitor the drought and flood situation. We monitor water bodies using
Sentinel-1 data and share the data through a bulletin. The bulletin is being used by anagriculture extension and agrarian development agencies to promote timely drought
response strategy among farming communities. Importantly, we are working in Sri
Lanka with the UN World Food Programme (WFP) to prepare a joint bulletin with all
members and departments. The information is not limited to disaster management, it
is being used across different sectors as well. Space technology is very beneficial inbuilding a regional drought monitoring system that counties can share and utilize thedata. IWMI’s significant contribution in this field led to the recognition of the World
Geospatial Excellence Award in 2020.

-

Congratulations on winning the World Geospatial Excellence Award in 2020! Could
you tell us the story? What was the situation when the system started and what
was the key point to winning?

We really take pride in having done this work in South Asia since 2005. When we
established it, we had a lot of challenges on access to satellite data, information
processing, limited computation capabilities and institutional coordination. In 2014, in
collaboration with World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the Global Water
Partnership (GWP) through the Integrated Drought Management Programme (IDMP),
Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) and the CGIAR
Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE) highlighted the importanceof a regional drought mechanism in South Asia. IWMI initiated regional efforts withgovernment partners in South Asia to promote access to drought knowledge products
for timely early warnings for early action. Today, the platform is being used bymember states in South Asia as well as by various institutes, not just for knowing
about the drought situation but also about how we promote drought resilient amongagricultural systems against climate change. The key point is that the monitoring
system has been continuing as of today, and we have been ensuring that countries get
the right information to make timely decisions at the field level, some information isused practically even at the farmer level. With the success in South Asia, we are
expanding the activities in Africa through the Water Secure Africa Initiative (WASA)
and Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA). We are
getting quite good recognition from African stakeholders to promote broader drought
resilience initiatives among drought-affected communities. We are also implementing
a similar framework in the Middle East and North Africa. Lastly, our recent activities
include developing a drought risk profile among the southern African region withassistance from the World Bank to promote wider drought investment for better
preparedness among various sectors.

Dr. Amarnath and his team © IWMI-

Drought contains three meanings, Meteorological, Hydrological, and Agricultural.
Do you cover all of them?

Yes, drought is a very complex phenomenon. It is difficult to quantify the impact from
one type of drought, for example, understanding the rainfall and soil moisture deficit
and the crop condition can help policymakers determine the extent of severity fordrought relief and provide a guide for timely drought response plans. We developed
the first Google Cloud-based early warning system for Afghanistan with assistancefrom the World Bank to promote a near real-time drought early warning tool (AFDEWS) for more than 35 drought indices across meteorological, hydrological, andagricultural droughts. We would like to share such knowledge products in our Sentinel
Asia platform so that member countries can develop a low-cost early warning system
without the need for larger investment in hardware and physical-based computers in
the future.

-

How about your recent activities in IWMI under COVID-19? How do you sustain
your key businesses to keep each project and component active?

In my opinion, COVID is not a never-ending problem, but it is a very challenging issue
today in addition to the climate crisis. Last year, during the time of COVID, we had amajor cyclone called “Burvei” that caused a few casualties and severe damage.
Therefore, we requested support from Sentinel Asia and the International Disasters
Charter via Sentinel Asia to prepare a response map. We all worked online due totravel restrictions and used social platforms like WhatsApp and Twitter to share what
was happening. We used weather forecast data on likely landfalls to ensure the spacecommunity can provide satellite images of the target areas for damage analysis. Thesedays, we have increasingly seen how digital platforms are quite innovative andhelpful. A crisis can always be managed if we work collectively as a team and use
digital tools successfully.

-

As you mentioned, dialogues with member countries of Sentinel Asia are one of the
key points, but communication is sometime not easy. Do you have any cases inwhich member countries request from you more information than the data you
provided?

We are looking at working with partners in disaster management, meteorology,
agriculture, and water resources in all those countries. We did need an assessment to
identify gaps and constraints regarding the Sentinel Asia Step 3 implementation on
the four priorities of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. One of theinitiatives we looked at was using satellite data information with field validations tobring more ownership on how we they interpret our knowledge products and how wemake use of the data in drought management and measures. We are doing a lot of
trials, I would not say they are completely successful, but we are co-designing withstakeholders including farmers.

-

From the lessons you have learned, do you have any suggestions for Sentinel Asia
to get good feedback from members?

I am very confident that the IWMI initiatives can fit very well with the four prioritiesof the Sendai Framework that also link to the Step 3 implementation of Sentinel Asia.
For example, when it comes to monitoring and early warning about priority one—understanding the disaster risk—if you generate useful disaster information, thepolicymakers and donors can invest in disaster risk reduction strategies. I think thepractical achievements we have done so far at IWMI on various activities cancontribute directly to the users of Sentinel Asia. It is important to promote bestpractices among member states on new innovations, tools and knowledge products sothey find opportunities to build resilient societies. We need to highlight the impact ofclimate change on local communities, urban systems, and improving water resourcesto accelerate action and support adaptation solutions. I think Sentinel Asia members
can adopt our knowledge and solutions to mitigate current and future climate risks. In
summary, I would say we need to communicate more and to build more awarenessamong members in achieving the Sendai Framework as well as SDGs by 2030. With
the Sentinel Asia Secretariat, we should work more with countries to share ourfindings more than we have done to date.

-

Another key word is donors to keep Sentinel Asia activities sustainable as you
mentioned. What kind of activities should the Sentinel Asia community do more toincrease appeal?

I think one of the reasons Sentinel Asia has been successful over years is partnershipand cooperation among member states. It is all about the members actively
participating in Sentinel Asia initiatives. One of my suggestions is to work with newpartners including universities, NGOs, and some private sectors in achieving Step 3
implementation. In times of COVID, people are moving online more, so it would begood to organize more webinars. We need to ensure disaster management
professionals are aware of the usefulness of Sentinel Asia, which is not only the
responsibility of the Secretariat but also of the members. Reporting best practices on
the use of space technology in flood and risk management is critically important forthe success of Sentinel Asia. Guiding countries to promote regional information
platforms might be the next step and reaching out to donors to support such initiatives
in achieving the global commitments. I do not think any other initiative on disasterrisk management exists in the Asia-Pacific region other than Sentinel Asia. Capacity
development is also very important to ensure the future human resources that will
advance in using new technologies. In fact, jointly with volunteer Sentinel Asia
experts including the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Sentinel
Asia Secretariat. we are planning to organize webinars dedicated to Sentinel Asia
colleagues. Particularly, from our part, we will be organizing specific training webinars
on flood and drought monitoring and its application.

-

Do you have any comments on a longer-term perspective?

We need to keep reaching out to Sentinel Asia member states to highlight the role ofspace technologies in disaster risk management. Individuals always think satellitedata are only for emergency mapping. However, for example, we can use the samedata to transfer risks from farmers or local communities to insurance companies inbuilding resilience and sustainable development. Sentinel Asia is a good place topresent best practice including our innovation on Index Based Flood Insurance, which
is being recognized by the Group of Earth Observation (GEO), as we won the 2020
GEO Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Award.

- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *4. How to send Emergency Observation Request
JPT member organizations are entitled to send an Emergency Observation Request(EOR) for disasters in the Asia-Pacific region. Please refer to https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html.
EOR Order Desk:
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)
HP: http://www.adrc.asia/
E-mail: sarequest@adrc.asia
FAX: +81-78-262-5546,
TEL: +81-78-262-5540- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS
Sentinel Asia launched a new operation system, OPTEMIS. Please refer to the website
on how to create an account for OPTEMIS. https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+=
Copyright 2021 the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Sentinel Asia Project OfficeSatellite Applications and Operations Center (SAOC)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Ochanomizu Sola City, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
E-mail: Z-SENTINEL.ASIA@ml.jaxa.jp
TEL: +81-3-6435-6785
FAX: +81-3-5777-1580

** June 2021 News from Sentinel Asia Project Office **- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *Topics:
1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters
2. Sentinel Asia Webinar on Space Technology for Drought Risk Management to beco-organized by ISRO and IWMI
3. How to Send an Emergency Observation Request
4. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters (As of 30 June)(1) Typhoon Choi-wan (Dante) in Philippines
Typhoon Choi-wan (Dante) struck the southern and central Philippines on 2 June
2021. According to the Voice of America (VOA), at least three people died and morethan 2,600 people were displaced, mostly due to floods, in 18 southern villages,
including about 600 villagers who moved to evacuation centers.
(https://www.voanews.com/east-asia-pacific/storm-kills-3-displaces-thousands-philippines)The Manila Observatory (MO) made an Emergency Observation Request (EOR) to
Sentinel Asia on 2 June. Among Data Provider Nodes (DPNs), the National Applied
Research Laboratories (NARL) provided their observation data. Information on thelatest response by Sentinel Asia is available from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210602PH.html

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL

(2) Oil spill emergency in Sri Lanka
An oil spill emergency occurred in Sri Lanka on 25 May. BBC News reported that
Sri Lankan authorities were preparing for an oil spill from a sunken container ship
after efforts to tow the vessel into deeper waters failed. The ship had been on fire
for two weeks near the port of Colombo. Part of the hull has settled on the seabed.
Experts fear hundreds of tons of oil in the ship's tanks could devastate nearby
marine life and beaches.
The ship had been carrying 25 metric tons of nitric acid, along with other chemicals
and cosmetics, when it caught fire on 20 May. Many of the ship's 1,486 containers
tumbled into the sea before the huge blaze was put out. Pollution from the ship including millions of plastic pellets which are the raw material for shopping bags had already coated stretches of Sri Lanka's western coastline.
(https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-57343139)
The Disaster Management Centre (DMC) of Sri Lanka made an EOR to Sentinel
Asia on 4 June. This EOR was escalated to the International Disasters Charter on
the request of DMC, which assumed the role of Project Manager (PM) for thisCharter activation. Among DPNs, the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology
Development Agency (GISTDA), the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO),
the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), and NARL provided observation
data. Among Data Analysis Nodes (DANs), the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT)
provided their Value Added Products (VAPs). Information on the latest response by
Sentinel Asia is available from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210525LK.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL

Value Added Product by AIT(3) Flood in Sri Lanka
A flood occurred in Sri Lanka on 3 June. ABC News said that at least six people had
died and five were still missing. Figures released by the government showed that
more than 5,000 people had moved to temporary shelters and more than 600
houses had been damaged.
(https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/floods-mudslides-kill-sri-lanka-50
00-displaced-78099927)
The DMC of Sri Lanka made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 5 June. This EOR was
escalated to the International Disasters Charter and International Water
Management Institute (IWMI) assumed the role of PM for this Charter activation.
Among DPNs, GISTDA, ISRO, and JAXA provided observation data. Among DANs,
AIT provided their VAPs. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia isavailable from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210603LK.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Value Added Product by AIT(4) Flood, Landslide in Nepal
A flood and a landslide occurred in Nepal on 15 June and caused tremendous
damage in the Helambu area. Nepal Republic Media Pvt Ltd. reported that morethan 50 people were missing in massive flooding of the Melamchi River, 39 of whomwere workers at the Melamchi Drinking Water Project.
(https://myrepublica.nagariknetwork.com/news/more-than-50-people-missing-in-m
elamchi-flood/?categoryId=81)
The Department of Hydrology and Meteorology of Nepal made an EOR to Sentinel
Asia on 16 June. Among DPNs, ISRO, GISTDA, and JAXA provided observation
data. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available from thefollowing link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210615NP.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA
- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *2. Sentinel Asia Webinar on Space Technology for Drought Risk Management to beco-organized by ISRO and IWMI
Recalling that several countries in the Asia-Pacific region severely suffer from droughts
and that space-based remote sensing technologies could provide a solution, experts
from ISRO and IWMI are co-organizing a dedicated webinar for the benefit of JPT
members titled “Space Technology for Drought Risk Management”. The webinar isplanned to take place on 19 and 20 July (TBC) from 10:00 (Hyderabad time) and willaddress, inter alia, theories of drought risk management and the introduction anddemonstration of the use of drought management platforms and will include aninteractive open discussion on regional cooperation mechanism for droughtmanagement and the way forward. This webinar is exclusive to JPT members andthose who are interested in participating in the webinar are requested to register by 10
July. The dedicated registration link as well as a brochure giving details were sent to
all JPT members by the Sentinel Asia Secretariat on 29 June. Many registrations from
JPT members would be appreciated.
- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *3. How to send an Emergency Observation Request
JPT member organizations are entitled to send an Emergency Observation Request(EOR) for disasters in the Asia-Pacific region. Please refer tohttps://sentinel-asia.org/e-learning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html.
EOR Order Desk:
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)

HP: http://www.adrc.asia/
E-mail: sarequest@adrc.asia
FAX: +81-78-262-5546,
TEL: +81-78-262-5540- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *4. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS
Sentinel Asia launched a new operation system, OPTEMIS. Please refer to the website
on how to create an account for OPTEMIS.
https://sentinel-asia.org/e-learning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+=
Copyright 2021 the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Sentinel Asia Project OfficeSatellite Applications and Operations Center (SAOC)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Ochanomizu Sola City, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
E-mail: Z-SENTINEL.ASIA@ml.jaxa.jp
TEL: +81-3-6435-6785
FAX: +81-3-5777-1580

** July 2021 News from Sentinel Asia Project Office **- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *Topics:
1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters
2. [Interview] Mr. Hans Guttman, Executive Director of the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center(ADPC)
3. [Event] Sentinel Asia Webinar on Drought Risk Management hosted by ISRO and IWMI
4. How to Send an Emergency Observation Request
5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters (as of 29 July)(1) Earthquake in Tajikistan (GLIDE Number: EQ-2021-000081-TJK)
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 27 km east of the Rasht district in Tajikistan on 10 July
2021. Al Jazeera reported that at least five people have died, according to authorities in themountainous country. (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/7/10/at-least-five-killed-intajikistan-quake)
The Central Asian Institute of Applied Geosciences (CAIAG) made an Emergency Observation
Request (EOR) to Sentinel Asia on 14 July. Among Data Provider Nodes (DPNs), the IndianSpace Research Organization (ISRO) and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
provided their observation data. Among Data Analysis Nodes (DANs), the Asian Institute ofTechnology (AIT) provided their Value Added Products (VAPs). Information on the latest
response by Sentinel Asia is available from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210707TJ.html

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Value Added Product by AIT(2) Flood in Kyrgyzstan (GLIDE Number: MS-2021-000082-KGZ)
A flood occurred in Kyrgyzstan on 12 July 2021. According to the FloodList, floods andmudslides caused by heavy rains swept away houses in two villages in the Aksy district inJalal-Abad Region of western Kyrgyzstan, close to the border with Uzbekistan. At least sevenpeople have died as a result. (https://floodlist.com/asia/kyrgyzstan-uzbekistan-floods-july2021)
CAIAG made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 14 July. Among DPNs, ISRO provided observation
data. In addition, the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA)
planned to provide data. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available fromthe following link:https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210712KG.html

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO
(3) Flood in Uzbekistan (GLIDE Number: MS-2021-000082-UZB)
A flood occurred in Uzbekistan on 13 July. The Ministry of Emergency Situations of the
Republic of Uzbekistan reported that the mudslide and floods flowed from neighboring
Kyrgyzstan and into the Kosonsoy district of Namangan region of Uzbekistan, causing severe
damage. As of 13 July, eight people had died and six were injured.
(https://floodlist.com/asia/kyrgyzstan-uzbekistan-floods-july-2021)
CAIAG made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 14 July. Among DPNs, ISRO, JAXA, GISTDA, andNational Applied Research Laboratories (NARL) provided observation data. Among Data
Analysis Nodes (DANs), AIT provided their VAP. Information on the latest response by
Sentinel Asia is available from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210713UZ.html

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Value Added Product by AIT(4) Flood and Mudflow in Kyrgyzstan (GLIDE Number: FF-2021-000087-KGZ)
A flood occurred in Suzak district Jalal-Abad region in Kyrgyzstan in 20 July and caused
mudflow in Changyr-Tash and Dostuk villages.
(https://akipress.com/news:660784:6yo_girl_killed_by_mudflow_in_Jalal-Abad_region/)
CAIAG made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 22 July. Among DPNs, ISRO and GISTDA provided
observation data. In addition, the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) planned toprovide data. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available from thefollowing link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210720KG.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO
(5) Typhoon Fabian in Philippines (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000091-PHL)
Typhoon Fabian (In-fa) hit the Philippines and caused heavy rain.
(https://mb.com.ph/2021/07/24/tropical-cyclone-fabian-tracker/)
The Manila Observatory (MO) made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 25 July. Among DPNs,
GISTDA provided observation data. In Addition, NARL planned to provide the data.
Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210725PH.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA(6) Flood in Myanmar (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000095-MMR)
A flood occurred in Myanmar on 26 July. The Radio Free Asia reported that heavy rains
battered the southern states of Kayin and Mon and Tanintharyi region beginning on 25 July,impacting as many as 3,000 people. More than 100 people in Kayin’s Hlaingbwe had to be
evacuated, according to a relief official from the area.
( https://www.rfa.org/english/news/myanmar/flooding-07262021205343.html)
The ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on disaster management (AHA
Centre) made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 27 July. Among DPNs, NARL planned to provide thedata. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210727MM.html- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *2. [Interview] Mr. Hans Guttman, Executive Director of the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center(ADPC)The Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC) is an autonomous international organizationthat works to build the resilience of people and institutions to disasters and the impacts of climatechange in Asia and the Pacific. Established in 1986, it provides comprehensive technical services
across social and physical sciences to countries in the region to support sustainable solutions forrisk reduction and climate resilience.
Since joining in 2014, ADPC has also been an active member of Sentinel Asia. ADPC has
supported the disaster management activities of the Sentinel Asia community, and notably coorganized and hosted the last Joint Project Team Meeting in 2019. The Sentinel Asia Secretariat
interviewed Mr. Hans Guttman, the executive director of ADPC.
------------------------------------(Sentinel Asia Secretariat)
We would like to ask you to introduce ADPC’s mission. We understand that ADPC defines its
vision as “Safer communities and sustainable development through disaster risk reduction.”(Mr. Hans Guttman)
Speaking more specifically, the ADPC Mission is that “ADPC is the premier internationalorganization for cooperation in and implementation of disaster risk reduction and building climate
resilience in Asia and the Pacific.” This underscores the role of ADPC through its international
charter to support disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate resilience (CR) actions throughout Asiaand the Pacific. For the past three decades, ADPC has provided support to actors in Asia and thePacific to reduce the impact of and increase the ability to respond to disasters. ADPC is also
committed to continuing to contribute to DRR and CR at the global level with other international
partners. I think it is important to recognize from our side at least that international cooperation andpartnerships form the basis for achieving our mission.
(Sentinel Asia Secretariat)
Could you tell us what motivation you had when you joined Sentinel Asia and what it has been liketo work in the Sentinel Asia community since then?
(Mr. Hans Guttman)
ADPC joined Sentinel Asia in 2014. The timing of our joining Sentinel Asia was when ADPC
significantly enhanced its satellite data processing capacity through our Geospatial Information
Department. By combining that satellite data processing capacity with ADPC’s knowledge on
disaster risk management and the connections with mandated national disaster management
agencies, ADPC was in a very good position to contribute to the Sentinel Asia community in asignificant way. Since then, ADPC has been actively participating in meetings and contributing to
the Sentinel Asia community. For example, as one of Sentinel Asia Data Analysis Nodes (DAN),ADPC provided technical support in analyzing remotely sensed data for the dam-break flooding in
Lao PDR in 2018, as well as several more floods in Myanmar in 2019. The analyses were done incollaboration not only with Sentinel Asia partners, but also with NASA and others. More
importantly, through ADPC’s connection with the National Disaster Management Office of Lao
PDR, we were able to confirm that the maps provided to them by Sentinel Asia were used for therelief efforts. Another contribution to the Sentinel Asia community was ADPC hosting the 7th Joint
Project Team Meeting for Sentinel Asia (JPTM 2019) in Bangkok, together with JAXA – for which
we received very positive feedback from Sentinel Asia members. ADPC looks forward tocontinuing to play a very active role in the Sentinel Asia community.
(Sentinel Asia Secretariat)
We are convinced ADPC’s contribution to Sentinel Asia at JPTM 2019 was immense. In particular,
the training workshop hosted by ADPC was quite effective. It was the first such endeavor in
Sentinel Asia’s history in which JPT members mutually trained JPT members with their own
strengths and expertise. The successful outcomes, thanks to the training workshop, include an
upgraded DAN membership (in the case of the Myanmar Information Management Unit, MIMU)
and opportune Emergency Observation Requests (EORs) from several JPT members who had
previously been unable to make requests. Could you recall the event yourself and share yourthoughts about it with us?
(Mr. Hans Guttman)
As mentioned earlier, the Joint Project Team Meeting in 2019 in Bangkok was successful – and I
would add that this was supported by JAXA to a large degree as co-organizer. It provided an
opportunity for the members to discuss country-level progress on the use of satellite data fordisaster response. We saw the best practices from member countries as well as other experts such as
the Earth Observatory of Singapore. We also were made aware of a tool developed by Thailand’s
Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) for Sentinel Asia.
I think it is important to note that despite the successes in many countries, the JPT meeting also
revealed the need for several Sentinel Asia members to enhance their capacities in order to reap thefull benefit of the satellite data that the Sentinel Asia community can provide. There remains a gap
between data providers such as space agencies and the disaster practitioners in countries.

It is clear to ADPC that we have a role in addressing this gap, given that ADPC has a great
understanding of both the data providers and the disaster management users. ADPC is committed inworking with Sentinel Asia to close this gap for countries in Asia and the Pacific.
(Sentinel Asia Secretariat)
You have mentioned the need to enhance capacity despite the previous successes in the Sentinel
Asia community and the need to continue our efforts to close the gap to enable Sentinel Asia
colleagues to make full use of space-based technology. Our Sentinel Asia colleagues, the IndianSpace Research Organization (ISRO) and the International Water Management Institute (IWMI)
have volunteered to jointly organize a dedicated capacity-building webinar session on space-based
drought monitoring for the benefit of SA, which will be happening in two weeks*. This is actuallysomething inspired by the last training workshop in 2019 hosted by ADPC.
*Note: Thanks to ISRO and IWMI, this webinar was held successfully on 19 and 20 July, attended
by many JPT members.
(Mr. Hans Guttman)That is very good to hear and very encouraging. Hopefully, we can see additional initiatives of asimilar nature as we are moving forward, and ADPC will be happy to contribute to such initiatives.
Perhaps the gap in the provision of information and tools, as well as the actual appearance of it, isan area that ADPC sees as one that needs to be addressed in order to fully leverage the capacities
that now exists in remote sensing data, specifically satellite information. This is nothing new. We
work closely with you and UNESCAP and their center on disaster information and they haveidentified a similar thing across the board of information. As I mentioned, disaster management
agencies sometimes are not aware of what can be done and how it can be done, or that they do nothave the capacity. So I think it is great to hear that this partner learning is expanding within them. I
also think that ADPC would be keen to assist in ensuring that this level of capacity is increased.
Then, people at the country level or even at the local level will be more capable and be technicalable to use the information. But there is also another route by which we are looking at providing
tools to assist users, that is pre-processing that they still have to ultimately modify the information.
It is useful to have specific purposes, but lowering the threshold of technical competence in order tobe able to do so is also important. I think those two elements need to be merged in order to fully
appreciate these applications.
(Sentinel Asia Secretariat)
In terms of ADPC’s contribution, at the operational level, ADPC has been also supporting
Emergency Observation Requests – whether as a DAN member or as a requestor on behalf of JPT
members significantly. In the newly established “Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for making
Emergency Observation Requests (EORs) concerning disasters in Thailand,” ADPC is officiallydesignated as a member supporting disasters in Thailand. Could you elaborate on your activities inthis respect?
(Mr. Hans Guttman)
I think we have to recognize that Thailand is uniquely positioned to demonstrate the success ofusing satellite data to support disaster management. Thailand has its own satellites operated by
GISTDA and is highly capable of analyzing and providing data to support emergency response andrelief. But more importantly, Thailand is also ready to take a lead in helping other countries toenhance their capacity through the Sentinel Asia community. ADPC is an autonomous internationalorganization officially hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand. Thailand is also afounding member of ADPC, and ADPC is mandated to provide technical support to Thailand andother members. ADPC works closely with Thailand’s Department of Disaster Prevention andMitigation (DDPM). But despite all the advancements made by DDPM, it needs to increase the useof technology such as satellite data to assist their disaster management planning and response.
Through the SOPs for making EORs for Thailand, ADPC will work with JAXA and the Sentinel
Asia Secretariat to make the connection between GISTDA and DDPM even stronger and will
demonstrate the successes of the SOPs in future meetings of Sentinel Asia’s JPT Meeting. In thiscontext, we aim to replicate the success in other countries.
(Sentinel Asia Secretariat)
As we have just heard from you, you have provided great support to Sentinel Asia. Now, from yourside, what do you expect in terms of Earth observation using space technologies for Disaster Risk
Reduction, especially with respect to Sentinel Asia?
(Mr. Hans Guttman)
Satellite-derived information is becoming more available to users. For ADPC, it is important thatthe uses of such technology can support countries to strategically implement global frameworks
such as the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk
Reduction. Satellite-based data will continue to generate evidence-based information that will
supplement data collected on the ground that will support decision making. ADPC expects that, as
the technology continues to advance, satellite-based data will become close to being real-time while
gaining higher resolution and better remote observation accuracy. These are important elements tofinding new applications, enhancing the current use and building the confidence of users such as
national disaster management organizations. ADPC also expects that the capacity of countries to use
such satellite-based data will not stop at the national level. It is prudent that local authorities, oreven people in communities, have access to the same information and also have the capacity toprocess and use the information, preferably in an assisted way. They are the front-line team whowill be faced with disaster situations and need accurate and timely data in order to make informed
decisions to save lives. With this vision, it is critical that the Sentinel Asia community addresses thecapacity gap observed in the disaster management community. Many developing countries do nothave the capacity to access, analyze and use satellite-derived data. Through the long-standing
framework of the Sentinel Asia Initiative, ADPC and its partners could bring together space
agencies, national and local disaster management organizations to address these challenges(Sentinel Asia Secretariat)
Speaking of challenges, the world – including the entire Sentinel Asia community – has been facing
the COVID-19 pandemic. How are you trying to maintain ADPC’s contributions to disastermonitoring while the COVID-19 pandemic continues to constrain activities?
(Mr. Hans Guttman)
Firstly, we have to recognize COVID-19 itself is a huge disaster. It is true that the COVID-19
pandemic has disrupted in-person interaction between teams and between countries, even withincountries, but it further highlights the need by users to be able to gain insights on disasters remotely,
without having to visit the places affected by the disasters. Satellite data suits this need perfectly.
ADPC continues to monitor disasters such as floods, droughts, and tropical storms through remotelysensed data and hydro-meteorological models. Our disaster data has been used by international
partners such as the Mekong River Commission and the United Nations World Food Programme.
We are not a mandated organization, but we do provide supplementary support or direct support
when requested. Even in the COVID-19 situation, ADPC maintains its connection with national
governments through its country offices and country representatives. You can see our staff presencein Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Vietnam, Myanmar, Lao PDR, Cambodia, thePhilippines, Indonesia, and Thailand and they support the governments and other actors wheneverthere are disasters in the countries, in which they have been quite successful and have made online
interactions from Bangkok and other places.
(Sentinel Asia Secretariat)
We see that ADPC has an extensive network and connections with disaster management
organizations, which we believe have contributed to your extensive support. Having been engaged
in Sentinel Asia activities yourself, have you found anything to feed back to the space communityand could you tell us what you would like to contribute to Sentinel Asia’s activities in the future?
(Mr. Hans Guttman)
Disaster management aims to lessen the impact of disasters, minimizing losses of life and property
damage. Although satellite-based technologies have proven to be a useful tool in supporting disastermanagement, the capacity to fully benefit from such data has been lacking from the disastermanagement side in many countries in Asia. ADPC offers to be a conduit between the satellite data
providers and the disaster management organizations. The satellite data providers and the Data
Analysis Nodes of Sentinel Asia need to provide action-ready information such as flood extent
maps that are clearly labeled. At the same time, ADPC can help disaster management organizations
enhance their technical capacity to interpret and make good use of the maps, while improving theawareness of decision makers. ADPC thinks that we are well suited to work with Sentinel Asia tobring the data providers and the disaster management organizations closer to each other so they areable to reap the benefits of this technology.
ADPC will continue to provide our technical contribution as an active Data Analysis Node (DAN),
and we would like to work with Sentinel Asia and some members of Sentinel Asia to develop
demonstration projects with external funding. The demonstration project will serve as a platform on
how a country can maximize uses of the Sentinel Asia mechanism and sustain the capacity to use
the mechanism in the long term. ADPC would like to showcase such a project to other members of
Sentinel Asia during a future JPT meeting. We hope for full support from Sentinel Asia indeveloping and implementing such demonstration projects.
- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *3. [Event] Sentinel Asia Webinar on Drought Risk Management hosted by ISRO and IWMI
The Sentinel Asia Webinar “Space Technology for Drought Risk Management” was held on 19 and
20 July 2021. The webinar was co-organized by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO)and the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) as part of Sentinel Asia activities. This
webinar brought together around 50 experts and practitioners from the community and addressed,
among other things, theories of drought risk management, the introduction and demonstration ofdrought management platforms, presentations by participants. In addition, the participants had aninteractive open discussion on regional cooperation mechanism for drought management and theway forward. Capacity-building events of this kind in which Sentinel Asia members mutually help
build capacity with their respective experience and expertise were first organized by ADPC andJAXA as part of the Joint Project Team Meeting (JPTM) in Bangkok in 2019, and this time ISROand IWMI jointly took the lead to expand the concept further for the benefit of Sentinel Asia
members. The Sentinel Asia community will continue to support and foster mutual capacitybuilding among members through cooperation.
- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *-

4. How to send an Emergency Observation Request
JPT member organizations are entitled to send an Emergency Observation Request (EOR) for
disasters in the Asia-Pacific region.
Please refer to https://sentinel-asia.org/e-learning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html.
EOR Order Desk:
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)
HP: http://www.adrc.asia/
E-mail: sarequest@adrc.asia
FAX: +81-78-262-5546,
TEL: +81-78-262-5540- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS
Sentinel Asia launched a new operation system, OPTEMIS. Please refer to the website on how tocreate an account for OPTEMIS.
https://sentinel-asia.org/e-learning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+=
Copyright 2021 the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Sentinel Asia Project OfficeSatellite Applications and Operations Center (SAOC)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Ochanomizu Sola City, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
E-mail: Z-SENTINEL.ASIA@ml.jaxa.jp
TEL: +81-3-6435-6785
FAX: +81-3-5777-1580

** August 2021 News from the Sentinel Asia Project Office **- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *Topics:
1. [News] Additional Information on Typhoon Fabian in the Philippines and on Flood in Myanmar
2. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters
3. [Event] Report on Sentinel Asia Training Programme on “Space Technology for Drought Risk
Management” (*contributed article from ISRO and IWMI)
4. How to Send an Emergency Observation Request
5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *1. [News] Additional Information on Typhoon Fabian in the Philippines and on Flood in Myanmar(The outline was given in the July 2021 Newsletter)(1) Typhoon Fabian in the Philippines (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000091-PHL)
Typhoon Fabian (In-fa) hit the Philippines and caused heavy rain. According to FloodList, over
80,000 people had to evacuate their homes in the Philippines after severe weather brought by
the southwest monsoon, was further intensified by Typhoon Fabian. At least three people had
died and five had been injured as a result of falling trees or lightning strikes.
(https://floodlist.com/asia/philippines-floods-typhoon-infa-july-2021)
The Manila Observatory (MO) made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 25 July. Among Data
Provider Nodes (DPNs), the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency(GISTDA), the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), the Japan Aerospace Exploration
Agency (JAXA) and the National Applied Research Laboratories (NARL) provided
observation data. Among Data Analysis Nodes (DANs), the Asian Institute of Technology(AIT) provided their Value Added Products (VAPs). Information on the latest responses by
Sentinel Asia is available from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210725PH.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL

Value Added Product by AIT(2) Flood in Myanmar (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000095-MMR)
A flood occurred in Myanmar on 26 July. The Radio Free Asia reported that heavy rains
battered the southern states of Kayin and Mon and Tanintharyi region beginning on 25 July,
impacting as many as 3,000 people. More than 100 people from Hlaingbwe in the state of
Kayin had to evacuate, according to a relief official from the area.
(https://www.rfa.org/english/news/myanmar/flooding-07262021205343.html)
The ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on disaster management (AHA
Centre) made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 27 July. Among DPNs, ISRO and JAXA provided
their data. In addition, GISTDA and NARL also planned to provide their data. Among DANs,
AIT provided their VAPs. Information on the latest responses by Sentinel Asia is available fromthe following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210727MM.html

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Value Added Product by AIT- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *2. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters(1) Flood and Landslide in Turkey (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000113-TUR)
Floods and landslides occurred in Turkey on 11 August. According to FloodList, severe floods
and landslides had caused major damages in several provinces of Turkey‘s Black Sea Region
after heavy rain on 10 August 2021. Six people had died and one person had gone missing.
(https://floodlist.com/asia/turkey-black-sea-floods-update-august-2021)

The Disaster & Emergency Management Presidency of Turkey (AFAD) made an EOR to
Sentinel Asia on 13 August. Among DPNs, GISTDA, ISRO, JAXA and NARL provided theirdata. Information on the latest responses by Sentinel Asia is available from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210811TR.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL
(2) Flood and Landslide in Japan (GLIDE Number: LS-2021-000114-JPN)
Floods and landslides occurred in Japan on 14 August. According to the Kyodo News, more rain
had been forecasted to hit areas from the western to northern parts of the country as a stationary
front was expected to move north along the Japanese archipelago. In the next 24 hours, up to 200
millimeters of rainfall had been forecasted in the southern Kyushu region, up to 180 mm in the
Shikoku region in western Japan, and up to 150 mm in the Tokai region in central Japan. At least
eight people had died so far.
(https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2021/08/6745d8bbde4f-more-rain-disaster-warnings-injapan-as-death-toll-rises-to-8.html)

The Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC) made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 13 August. This
EOR was escalated to the International Disasters Charter. Yamaguchi University assumed therole of Project Manager (PM) for this Charter activation. Among DPNs, GISTDA provided thedata. In addition, NARL planned to provide its data. Among DANs, RIKEN and Chiba University

provided their VAPs. Information on the latest responses by Sentinel Asia is available from thefollowing link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210814JP.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Value Added Product by RIKEN

- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *3. [Event] Report on the Sentinel Asia Training Programme on “Space Technology for Drought Risk
Management” (*article contribution from ISRO and IWMI)
On 19 and 20 July, the webinar on “Space Technology for Drought Risk Management” was held. The
webinar was co-organized by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the International
Water Management Institute (IWMI) and was facilitated by the Sentinel Asia secretariat as part of
Sentinel Asia’s Capacity Building Programme. ISRO and IWMI jointly contributed the following
report:Background
Sentinel Asia is an international cooperation initiative established by the Asia-Pacific Regional Space
Agency Forum (APRSAF), to demonstrate the potential value and impact of using Earth observation
technologies, combined with near-real-time information dissemination methods and Web-GIS
mapping tools for disaster management support in the Asia-Pacific region. The Sentinel Asia
community has long recognized the need for capacity-building towards strengthening its activities.
In order to address this need, at the Joint Project Team Meeting in Bangkok in 2019, a specificTraining Workshop was organized for the first time in which member organizations trained together
by sharing their respective expertise and knowledge. In the Training Workshop, ISRO and IWMI
conducted training programmes on “topological and hydrological modelling”, and “emergency
response mapping using multisource satellite data,” respectively. Following the Training Workshop
in 2019, the ISRO and IWMI jointly proposed to expand its achievements, by volunteering
themselves to provide capacity-building workshops for the benefit of the Sentinel Asia community.
To begin with, the following capacity building programmes were proposed:
1. Space Technology for Drought Risk Management by the National Remote Sensing Centre /Indian Space Research Organization (NRSC/ISRO), India, in association with theInternational Water Management Institute (IWMI) on 19-20 July, 2021
2. Spatial Flood Early Warning by the NRSC/ISRO in October 2021
3. Emergency Response Mapping and Crisis Management by the IWMI in association with the
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC), NRSC/ISRO in December 2021
These training programmes will be coordinated by the Sentinel Asia Secretariat. The first training
programme on Space Technology for Drought Risk Management has been jointly organised by
NRSC/ISRO and IWMI. About 60 participants from 11 Sentinel Asia countries / regions, ISRO andIWMI have already participated in the programme.
Drought Risk Management
Drought is a serious hydro-meteorological disaster limiting agricultural production worldwide.
Drought management is closely linked to sustainable agriculture and food security. Challenges indrought management are ever increasing because drought is the manifestation of complex interactions
between weather, soils, crops and human actions. Data centric technologies like satellite remotesensing, GPS, field instrumentation and mobile phones coupled with new techniques of data analysis
are providing new data, information and knowledge for achieving an efficient and effective droughtmanagement. Reliable drought indices available from satellite observations such as the Normalized
Different Vegetation Index (NDVI), Land Surface Water Index (LSWI), Shortwave Angle Slope
Index (SASI) and radar backscatters, as well as biophysical products like land surface temperature,soil moisture and rainfall remote sensing technology, are playing a key role in drought detection,
monitoring and impact assessments. Satellite based resource maps and high-resolution satellite
images are useful for developing, implementing and performing impact assessment of long-term
drought management measures. Abundantly available satellite data, an increasing network of weather
observatories, mobile-based fast and efficient field data collection systems, easily accessible andadvanced techniques of data analysis etc., signify that there is huge scope for establishing decision
support systems for drought management. Such systems would further strengthen agro-advisories,
crop risk management, disaster relief, crop insurance and drought prevention strategies, among others.
Scope of the training programme
The objective of the programme was to brief the participants from Sentinel Asia members on thepotential and current status of utilisation of EO technology for operational drought monitoring, inseason drought management, drought impacts assessments and long-term drought management.
Advances in drought assessment with new datasets and emerging technologies also form part of thisprogramme.
The programme consisted of expert presentations and an interactive session to make the message tobe conveyed more impactful. Scope for enhancing technology utilisation, need for customisation of
products and services, research gaps, as well as data and information sharing opportunities wereplanned and documented for future courses of action towards establishing a regional cooperation
mechanism for drought risk management.
Proceedings of the 2-day training programme (19-20 July 2021)
This webinar brought together around 50 experts and practitioners from the Sentinel Asia community.
The inaugural session of the training programme included the inaugural address by Dr. V. V. Rao,
Deputy Director, Remote Sensing Applications, NRSC and brief remarks by (a) Dr. Shantanu
Bhatwadekar, Director, Earth observation applications & Disaster management support Programme
Office (EDPO), ISRO Hq. (b) Dr. Raj Kumar, Director, NRSC (ISRO) (c) Dr. Rachael Mcdonnell,
Deputy Director General, IWMI, Sri Lanka and Mr. Takanori Miyoshi (Sentinel Asia Secretariat).
This kind of capacity-building event in which Sentinel Asia members help each other build theircapacities by making use of their respective experiences and expertise, was first organized by Asian
Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC) and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) as part of
the Joint Project Team Meeting (JPTM) in Bangkok in 2019, and this time, the ISRO and IWMI
jointly took the lead to expand it further for the benefit of Sentinel Asia members. The Sentinel Asia
community will continue to support and foster capacity-building among its members through mutual
cooperation. Since drought is a large hydro-meteorological disaster causing huge economic losses
with cascading effects, the need for using science-based evidence solutions for drought management
has been well recognised. Therefore, the current training programme was quite relevant to deepen theparticipant’s understanding of the nature of drought and the scope for new technologies to minimise
losses from such disaster. All the speakers in the inaugural session pointed out the need for organisingdrought monitoring and management related capacity building programmes more frequently for the
benefit of Sentinel Asia member countries.
Technical Session – 1 had four presentations. It started with a brief presentation on “Understanding
drought disaster and its management” by the NRSC, which set the platform for rest of thepresentations. Drought is not an event like floods/cyclones. It is a complex phenomenon interlinked
with meteorological, hydrological and agricultural variables. Therefore, drought monitoring andmanagement are multidisciplinary in nature involving many institutions.
The second presentation in this session was on drought monitoring indicators. It covered extensively
all the meteorological, hydrological and agricultural indicators. Satellite based indicators of
precipitation, soil moisture and crop conditions were emphasised. This was followed by ademonstration on crop condition assessment using optical, thermal and microwave datasets.
The third presentation in this session was on drought monitoring practices in India with recent
examples. It covered the genesis, evolution and the current status of the satellite-based droughtmonitoring project, namely, the “National Agricultural Drought Assessment and Monitoring System”
conceptualised and started in 1989. Satellite-based drought monitoring has become one of the mostsuccessful remote sensing applications in India. The discussion then centred on the Manual forDrought Management of 2016, which is being followed in India for objective drought assessment,
and highlighting the adoption of an integrated approach with multiple drought indicators. It also
covered recent examples on utilisation of SAR data for drought detection, contingency crop planning
developed by some states and agriculture monitoring systems being developed. Effective droughtmonitoring systems of some of the states were mentioned to draw the attention of the participants tothe best practices on remote sensing technology utilisation for drought management.
With reliable NDVI, LSWI, IDSI, SASI and radar backscatter indices available in moderate spatial
and temporal resolutions and with geospatial products on soil moisture and rainfall, geospatial
technology has contributed new information and knowledge for improving drought-related
assessment, emergency declarations and management in the country.
The fourth presentation in this session was on the South Asia Drought Monitoring System developedby the IWMI which is now under implementation. It covered various datasets and clues for drought
assessment, decision support system, customised products, dissemination of information etc., under
this project. It was also mentioned that the information on drought generated in this project was being
effectively used for taking drought management actions in Afghanistan.
The second day of the webinar included Technical Session-2 and the wrap-up. In this session, there
were three presentations. The first presentation was on the agro-advisory system of the Indian
Meteorological Department to support farmers. It covered various information products on current
and forecast weather parameters and utilisation of these data collection equipment for developing
farmer advisories, and presented the institutional structure for developing and expanding them.
Effective utilisation of digital technologies in terms of web tools, web portals, mobile apps, etc., fordissemination and end-use of advisories was highlighted. Feedback collection from farmers and theeconomic benefits as a result of the advisories were also part of the presentation, and finally, the scopefor strengthening the advisories system was highlighted.
The second presentation in this session was on space technology supporting long-term droughtmanagement. Concepts for long-term drought management, hazards, vulnerabilities and risks werediscussed, followed by a demonstration on using time series data on weather, satellite indicators andbio-physical parameters for drought vulnerability mapping. It was also explained to the participantsthat satellite-based maps of resources and high-resolution satellite images were being used to develop,
implement and perform impact assessment of long-term drought management measures in India, byshowing them the use of satellite and mobile technologies for monitoring and evaluating long-term
drought management interventions. Smart phone-based monitoring of crop level assets has become asuccessful technology application in India. Overall, these crop protection mechanisms have beenstrengthened to become effective tools for drought risk mitigation.

The third presentation in this session was on the drought management efforts by the IWMI.
Collaborative efforts between the IWMI and the private sector to develop comprehensive solutions
for drought risk management and the impact of such efforts were presented, highlighting the need todevelop new tools and information products, establish multi-institutional collaboration, and the roleof private sector in these efforts, etc.
The brief session on interactive presentations, consisted of two presentations by participants from
India and Taiwan. The first was a presentation by the Mahalanobis National Crop Forecasting Centre(MNCFC) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, which covered
the current drought monitoring system in the country using various indicators and the increasing roleof space technology for drought assessment.
The second was a presentation by the National Space Organization (NSPO) of National Applied
Research Laboratories (NARL) of Taiwan, which showcased the repository of satellite data being
used for disaster management. Analysis ready data products are made available to the stakeholders in
the form of Open Data Cubes, in public domain.
Some of the participants interacted with the experts on specific aspects of drought occurrence in theirregions and the scope for developing customised information products.
Concluding remarks
The Sentinel Asia Secretariat extended his gratitude to the ISRO and IWMI for organizing thiswebinar, by reiterating the significance of capacity-building activities and recalling the previous
achievements at the Training Workshop, which was part of the JPTM, jointly organized by ADPC and
JAXA. Moreover, Mr. Miyoshi expressed his wishes for the expansion of these efforts for the benefitof the Sentinel Asia community.
The ISRO and IWMI indicated that with several open-access satellite data, an increasing network of
weather observatories, mobile-based fast and efficient field data collection systems, as well as easily
accessible and advanced technologies such as cloud platforms, it is now possible to develop robust
drought monitoring and management systems that allow taking timely action to reduce drought risks.
It was also concluded that the regional cooperation mechanism among the Sentinel Asia member
countries needed to be further strengthened in order to share the drought-related analysis ready data,
as well as the knowledge and expertise for enhancing drought management capabilities.

Annexe

Schedule of the Capacity Building Programme- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *5. How to send an Emergency Observation Request
JPT member organizations are entitled to send an Emergency Observation Request (EOR) for
disasters in the Asia-Pacific region. Please refer to https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html.
EOR Order Desk:
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)
HP: http://www.adrc.asia/
E-mail: sarequest@adrc.asia
FAX: +81-78-262-5546,
TEL: +81-78-262-5540- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *6. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS
Sentinel Asia launched a new operation system, OPTEMIS. Please refer to the website on how tocreateanaccount
for
OPTEMIS.
https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+=
Copyright 2021 the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Sentinel Asia Project OfficeSatellite Applications and Operations Center (SAOC)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Ochanomizu Sola City, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
E-mail: Z-SENTINEL.ASIA@ml.jaxa.jp
TEL: +81-3-6435-6785
FAX: +81-3-5777-1580

** September 2021 News from Sentinel Asia Project Office **- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *Topics:
1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters
2. [News] Sentinel Asia has been invited by the UNDRR to make voluntary commitments to the
Sendai Framework
3. Sentinel Asia Webinar "Space Technology for Flood Forecast Modelling" to be co-organizedby ISRO and IWMI
4. How to Send an Emergency Observation Request
5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters(1) Tropical Storm Jolina (Conson) in the Philippines (GLIDE Number: TC-2021-000136PHL)
Tropical Storm Jolina (Conson) made landfall on the Philippines on 6 September. According toReliefWeb, the Philippines National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council(NDRRMC), it caused at least 17 fatalities, 24 injured individuals, and seven missing people,
more than 29,830 people were displaced across 181 evacuation centers and up to 313,373 people have been affected.
(https://reliefweb.int/report/viet-nam/vietnam-philippines-tropical-cyclone-conson-updategdacs-jtwc-aha-centre-ndrrmc)
The Manila Observatory (MO) made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 8 September. Among DPNs,
the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology
Development Agency (GISTDA), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), and the
National Applied Research Laboratories (NARL) provided data. Among DANs, the Asian
Institute of Technology (AIT) and the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC)
provided their VAPs. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available from thefollowing link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210908PH.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL

Value Added Product by AITValue Added Product by MBRSC(2) Typhoon Conson in Vietnam (GLIDE Number: TC-2021-000136-PHL)
After passing over the Philippines, tropical storm Conson made landfall over Vietnam.
ReliefWeb reported that according to the AHA Centre and media, two people died and 18 people
were rescued and at least 62 houses were damaged in Vietnam.
(https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/13/vietnam-warns-of-floods-and-landslides-after-stormweakens.html)

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) of Vietnam made an EOR to
Sentinel Asia on 13 September. Among DPNs, ISRO, JAXA, and NARL provided data. Among
DANs, AIT provided their VAPs. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available
from the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20210913VN.html

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Value Added Product by AIT

- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *2. [News] Sentinel Asia has been invited by the UNDRR to make voluntary commitments to the
Sendai Framework
As circulated on 6 September as an extra edition of Sentinel Asia Newsletter, in light of thepartnership between the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) andSentinel Asia as well as of the achievements of Sentinel Asia, and the enhanced recognition of
Sentinel Asia in the global disaster management community, Sentinel Asia has been invited by
the UNDRR to submit its commitments to the Sendai Framework Voluntary Commitments(SFVC).
Currently, Sentinel Asia’s SFVC are about Emergency Observation Requests (EORs). Sentinel
Asia will make its best efforts to offer support in terms of disaster assessment and response
planning, and to activate supporting agencies as required. An EOR represents an appeal forassistance from a disaster-affected country and is the fundamental instrument around which theSentinel Asia framework is organized and executed. While publishing the initial SFVC, Sentinel
Asia will further update and upgrade the SFVC in the future and will continue to be committed
to implementing the Sendai Framework through cooperation among Sentinel Asia member
organizations.
＊The detailed story is posted on the Sentinel Asia website: https://sentinelasia.org/event/20210906/Sentinel_Asia_has_been_invited_by_the_UNDRR_to_make_voluntar
y_commitments_to_the_Sendai_Framework.pdf- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *3. Sentinel Asia Webinar "Space Technology for Flood Forecast Modelling" to be co-organizedby ISRO and IWMI
Flooding constitutes the most prevalent and costly natural disaster in the world. Particularly, theAsia-Pacific region suffers the most. While a variety of mitigation measures can be implemented
to minimize the impact of flooding, satellite technology can play a vital role. In this regard,
experts from ISRO and IWMI have volunteered to co-organize a dedicated webinar as part of
Sentinel Asia activities for the benefit of JPT members. The webinar is titled “Space Technology
for Flood Forecast Modelling” and is planned to take place on 27 and 28 October from 10:00(Hyderabad time).
This webinar is a follow-on of the webinar on space-based drought risk management coorganized by ISRO and IWMI on 19 and 20 July, and will address, just as its predecessor, among
other things, general theories, experts' lectures, and an interactive session. It is expected tocontribute to deepening the understanding of participants on this thematic topic and helping themtake future actions toward mitigating flood risks and responding better to floods.
This webinar is exclusive to JPT members and those who are interested in participating in thiswebinar are requested to register via dedicated link. The link as well as the brochure giving details
on this webinar will be sent to all JPT members by the Sentinel Asia Secretariat. Manyregistrations from JPT members would be appreciated.
- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *4. How to send an Emergency Observation Request
JPT member organizations are entitled to send an Emergency Observation Request (EOR) for
disasters in the Asia-Pacific region. Please refer to https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html.
EOR Order Desk:
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)
HP: http://www.adrc.asia/
E-mail: sarequest@adrc.asia
FAX: +81-78-262-5546,
TEL: +81-78-262-5540- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS
Sentinel Asia launched a new operation system, OPTEMIS. Please refer to the website on how tocreateanaccount
for
OPTEMIS.
https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+=
Copyright 2021 the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Sentinel Asia Project OfficeSatellite Applications and Operations Center (SAOC)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Ochanomizu Sola City, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
E-mail: Z-SENTINEL.ASIA@ml.jaxa.jp
TEL: +81-3-6435-6785
FAX: +81-3-5777-1580

** October 2021 News from Sentinel Asia Project Office **- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *Topics:
1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters
2. [Interview] Dr. Raj Kumar, Outstanding Scientist, Director, National Remote Sensing Centre(NRSC), Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)
3. [Event] Sentinel Asia Webinar
4. How to Send an Emergency Observation Request
5. Using the Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters (as of 28 October, 2021)(1) Tropical Storm Dianmu Flood in Thailand (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000147-THA)
Tropical storm Dianmu caused flood in 32 provinces in Thailand. According to the Bangkok
Post, as of 5 October, eight people died and one remains missing.
(https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2192803/storm-dianmu-floods-linger-in-18provinces)
The Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) made an EOR
to Sentinel Asia on 29 September. Among DPNs, the Indian Space Research Organisation(ISRO), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the National Applied
Research Laboratories (NARL) provided data. Among DANs, the Asian Institute ofTechnology (AIT) provided its VAPs. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia isavailable at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211001TH.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-4) provided by NARL

Value-Added Product by AIT(2) Flood, Landslides and Storm in Vietnam (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000158-PHL)
Heavy rain was expected in northern and central Vietnam. Tuoi Tre News reported the risk offlashfloods and landslides.
(https://tuoitrenews.vn/news/society/20211006/tropical-depression-to-bring-downpours-to-central-vietnam/63434.html)
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) made an EOR to Sentinel Asia
on 7 October. Among DPNs, JAXA and GISTDA provided data. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211006VN.html

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA(3) Flood and Landslides in the Philippines (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000158-PHL)
Tropical storm Maring (Kompasu) made landfall in the vicinity of Fuga Island, the Philippines,on 11 October and crossed the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR). According to CNN, theNational Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council announced that the death toll was atleast 23 as of 17 October.
(https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2021/10/16/Maring-death-toll-October-16.html)
The Manila Observatory (MO) made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 13 October. Among DPNs,
JAXA, GISTDA, ISRO and NARL provided data. Information on the latest response by Sentinel
Asia is available at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211012PH.html

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (FORMOSAT-5) provided by NARL

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

(4) Typhoon Kompasu in Vietnam (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000158-PHL)
After passing over the Philippines, Typhoon Kompasu (Maring) approached Vietnam. According
to the AHA Centre, the National Disaster Management Authority (VNDMA) reported that 2,144
houses were damaged and 2,669 ha of rice fields, 1,042 ha of other crops and 3,044 livestock
were lost.
(https://ahacentre.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/FlashUpdate_03_20Oct2021-TCKOMPASU-PHLVNMTHL.pdf)
MONRE made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 10 October in anticipation of the disaster. Among
DPNs, GISTDA and ISRO provided data. In addition, NARL planned to provide its data.
Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211012PH.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO
(5) Flood, Landslides and Storm in India (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000161-IND)
Heavy rain over Kerala state in India caused landslides and floods. CNN reported that at least 27
people were killed.
(https://edition.cnn.com/2021/10/18/india/kerala-rains-flooding-intl-hnk/index.html)
ISRO made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 17 October. Among DPNs, GISTDA and JAXA provided
data. In addition, NARL planned to provide its data. Information on the latest response by
Sentinel Asia is available at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211016IN.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

(6) Volcanic eruption in Japan (GLIDE Number: VO-2021-000163-JPN)
A volcanic eruption was observed at Mt. Aso in southwestern Japan on 20 October. Kyodo
News reported that Mt. Aso's volcanic alert level was raised to 3 on a scale of 5, with people
urged not to approach the mountain.
(https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2021/10/fcaf30350266-urgent-mt-aso-in-southwest-japanerupts-alert-level-raised.html)
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC) made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 20 October.
Among DPNs, ISRO, GISTDA and JAXA provided data. In addition, MBRSC and NARL
planned to provide their data.. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available
at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211020JP.html

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA
(7) Flood and Landslides in Vietnam (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000166-VNM)
From 22 to 25 October, heavy rainfall was recorded in Vietnam, causing widespread floods.
VNExpress reported that 11,000 houses were submerged, one person was killed and threeothers were missing.
(https://e.vnexpress.net/news/news/record-rainfall-deluges-central-vietnam-province4376382.html)
MONRE made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 25 October. Among DPNs, ISRO provided data. In
addition, GISTDA planned to provide its data. Information on the latest response by Sentinel
Asia is available at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211020JP.html

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *2. [Interview] Dr. Raj Kumar, Outstanding Scientist, Director, National Remote Sensing Centre(NRSC), Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)

Dr. Raj Kumar
Outstanding Scientist
Director, National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC)
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)The National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)
has been one of the leading supporters of the Sentinel Asia community so far and is strengthening
its support to Sentinel Asia. The centre provides satellite observation for Emergency Observation
Requests (EORs) from members of Sentinel Asia and contributes to the operation of Sentinel
Asia. The Sentinel Asia secretariat interviewed Dr. Raj Kumar, Outstanding Scientist andDirector, NRSC, to introduce the centre’s activities regarding Sentinel Asia.
Dr. Raj Kumar currently leads a team of scientists and engineers from various disciplines, with amandate of establishing ground stations, generation of data products, dissemination to users,
development of techniques for remote sensing applications including disaster management
support, geospatial services for good governance and capacity building for professionals, faculty
and students. His research is mainly focused on effective utilization of space technology,
especially microwave remote sensing, for studies of ocean, atmosphere and climate to benefit
society. He also leads the Indian Science Team for NASA-ISRO joint mission (NISAR) as Project
Scientist.
Sentinel Asia Secretariat
ISRO is a major space agency and its brilliant achievements in recent years are well known. At
the same time, its large scale makes it difficult to understand the roles of each department. Can
you tell us about the role of NRSC, an ISRO core division, in the context of disaster management?
Dr. Raj Kumar
National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) is one of the major centres of Indian Space Research
Organisation (ISRO), Department of Space (DOS), and has a mandate of establishing groundstations for receiving satellite data, data product generation, dissemination to users, developmentof techniques for remote sensing applications including disaster management support, geospatialservices for good governance and capacity building for professionals, faculty and students.
ISRO has established the Decision Support Centre (DSC) at NRSC under ISRO’s Disaster
Management Support (DMS) Programme. It is a single-window delivery mechanism of spaceand aerial-based information to accommodate various needs during all phases of disasters in India.
The DSC provides space-based inputs in near real time regarding various disasters to the central
and state DMS organizations in the country. These products are being used for relief and rescue
operations, damage assessment and as input in disaster management by state and central DMS
organisations in the field. NRSC, ISRO also provides Indian remote sensing satellite data support
to various Emergency Observation Requests (EORs) received through Sentinel Asia and theInternational Charter regarding various disasters worldwide. We are also actively involved incapacity building programmes on “Space Technology Utilisation for Disaster Management and
DRR” in the country and in Sentinel Asia region.
ISRO has established the National Database for Emergency Management (NDEM) at the behestof the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), India, which is a state-of-art facility. NDEM is a multiscale geospatial database repository coupled with decision support system tools at a national level.
It is a unique, homogenous database that serves the entire country with essential databaseelements for addressing emergency/disaster management with a structured framework and multiinstitutional participation to assist disaster managers of India. NDEM disseminates all disasterspecific products via a geospatial platform named “Bhuvan” in near real time, in addition tomaintaining a disaster-specific historical database.
Sentinel Asia Secretariat
The Sentinel Asia secretariat appreciates ISRO’s contribution to Sentinel Asia as a Data Provider
Node (DPN) for more than a decade now. Could you introduce some of NRSC’s major activities
in recent years relating to Sentinel Asia, including EOR response?
Dr. Raj Kumar
ISRO has been part of all of Sentinel Asia’s three-step activities and has been contributing tovarious EORs by providing IRS-series satellite datasets since its inception. Apart from satellite
datasets, NRSC/ISRO has volunteered the role of Data Analysis Node (DAN) to extend its
expertise in generating value-added products and special reports for Cyclone “NARGIS”(Myanmar) – 2008, Pakistan floods – 2010, Japan Tsunami – 2011, Sri Lanka Floods – 2017 &
2018, Indonesia Tsunami – 2018.
In recent years, 2018-2021 (until August), about 67 EORs were supported with the help of 159
Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) satellite datasets in addressing various disasters in member

countries. These datasets include data from ResourceSat series, RISAT-1, Cartosat series, etc.
Sentinel Asia Secretariat
In addition to your contributions as a DPN, we appreciate your engagement as a Sentinel Asia
Steering Committee (SC) member. In January 2020, ISRO hosted for the first time an SC meetingin Hyderabad. Could you tell us about your motivation or background reason for hosting thismeeting and the result?
Dr. Raj Kumar
The 10th Steering Committee (SC) meeting was hosted by ISRO for the first time during 21 and22 January, 2020, in Hyderabad in close association with the Japan Aerospace Exploration
Agency (JAXA) as the Sentinel Asia Secretariat. About 17 international participants from SC
member organizations participated in the meeting.
ISRO hosted this SC meeting in understanding of the requirements of Sentinel Asia member
countries to gain exposure regarding the technologies utilized in addressing disaster management
in respective countries and to have open-ended discussions on various aspects of disastermanagement. This has benefited both ISRO as well as Sentinel Asia in general in terms of theeffectiveness of its approach to the Step 3 disaster risk reduction phase of Sentinel Asia. The
following important actions emerged during the course of the meeting;• Improving Sentinel Asia operations from the viewpoint of DPN and DAN.
• Strengthening user interaction within the Sentinel Asia community.
• Capacity building programmes on various disaster-specific themes were proposed after
thorough discussions, and ISRO proposed to organize/contribute regarding threeprogrammes: Drought Risk Management, Spatial Flood Early Warning, and Emergency
Response Mapping and Crisis Management• Existing Sentinel Asia working groups and related roles and responsibilities, as well asrecommendations for future directions• Strategies on the private sector’s involvement in Sentinel Asia activities were discussed
Sentinel Asia Secretariat
It is a significant achievement in Sentinel Asia Step 3 that international collaboration to operate
OPTEMIS developed by GISTDA with other members was realized. We would like to aim forthe next level of collaboration among systems used by other members. In this regard, as you
mentioned earlier, we understand that NRSC launched and operates the sophisticated “Bhuvan”
platform. Could you tell us more about it and advise on possibilities for its use by Sentinel Asia
members?

Dr. Raj Kumar
Bhuvan is an Indian geo-platform of ISRO. It provides a host of wide-ranging services coveringvisualization of multi-date, multi-platform, multi-sensor satellite data & thematic maps, queryand analysis, free data & products download, near-real-time support to disaster services, mobile
apps for crowdsourcing, and diverse geospatial applications, for utilization by citizens andgovernment agencies. It serves as a Geospatial Governance platform by hosting applications ofvarious ministries/departments of central/state governments for planning, monitoring andevaluation.
One of the important components of Bhuvan is disaster services. Disaster Management
Information Support services are hosted on Bhuvan for six types of natural disasters: Flood,
Cyclone, Drought, Forest Fire, Earthquake and Landslide. Information support ranging fromprediction, early warning, alerts and aiding decision makers for post-disaster damage assessment,
hazard zonation and rehabilitation plan. Bhuvan disseminates the information via SMS, e-mailand feeds to users. Bhuvan’s rich administrative datasets and thematic datasets besides the coredisaster ones comprise a single-window system and platform for users and decision makers torealize effective disaster mitigation and preparation plans.
All applications and services through Bhuvan are developed using open-source solutions andOpen Geospatial Consortium (OGC) compliant and restricted to Indian territory. The Bhuvan
framework can be customized and used for any disaster application as a collaborative effort withproper administrative arrangements by Sentinel Asia member countries. The geo-spatial databasehas to be provided by the member countries concerned. Of course, in order to induce interestsand make such active participation from the part of member countries possible and fruitful, we
will be pleased to raise awareness of Bhuvan, reaching out to the Sentinel Asia community byourselves as well and we may also discuss specific plans to customize Bhuvan in close
collaboration with member countries. Also, ISRO can provide technical support in strengthening
the existing system developed by GISTDA.
Sentinel Asia Secretariat
On 19 and 20 July, 2021, ISRO organized and hosted a webinar called “Space Technology forDrought Risk Management” with IWMI, as a capacity building program with Sentinel Asia.
Among the themes, “drought” is different from other disasters in terms of time frame (speed ofprogress). How should the Sentinel Asia community tackle such “slow-onset” disasters? And
what can we expect ISRO’s contribution to be on this issue?. Could you also advise us of yourplan for future capacity building programs for Sentinel Asia, if any?
Dr. Raj Kumar
The occurrence and progression of drought are slow. It is a hydro-meteorological orenvironmental disaster. Drought monitoring and impact assessment is multi-disciplinary in natureand includes meteorological, hydrological, agricultural and socio-economic indicators. Droughtmanagement requires a strong system for monitoring and timely assessment of impact. Recent
advances in data-centric technologies such as remote sensing, mobiles and weather
instrumentation and data analytics offer enormous opportunities for objective assessment of thedrought situation leading to its effective management.
NRSC (ISRO) is an active partner in UNESCAP’s regional cooperation mechanism for droughtrisk management. NRSC has developed automation tools for satellite data analysis in droughtmonitoring in Myanmar and Sri Lanka under this mechanism. Similarly, NRSC organised
capacity building programmes for various countries, identified by UNESCAP. Such initiatives
may also be taken up for Sentinel Asia member countries on drought risk management andmonitoring. Development of automation tools for satellite data analysis in drought monitoring,organisation of customised capacity building programmes, and exchange of knowledge andmethodologies are some of the activities that can be planned for Sentinel Asia.
Also, other than the “Space Technology for Drought Risk Management” webinar, as an active
partner of Sentinel Asia, ISRO is planning to organize the following two capacity building
training programmes:
1. Spatial Flood Early Warning by NRSC/ISRO with IWMI in October 2021
2. Emergency Response Mapping and Crisis Management by IWMI in association with ADRC,
NRSC/ISRO in winter (TBC)
In addition to these, ISRO will support and be associated with any other capacity building
programmes envisaged under Sentinel Asia in the near future.
Sentinel Asia Secretariat
We understand that ISRO is preparing for a NISAR project, an ISRO–NASA collaboration for a
SAR satellite, which has cutting-edge sensors. Could you introduce this mission, including its
possible contribution to Sentinel Asia?
Dr. Raj Kumar
ISRO and NASA JPL are jointly developing a state-of-the-art L- and S-band SweepSAR(NISAR), planned to be launched by India. The NISAR mission has been conceptualized toprovide L- and S-band space-borne SAR data with high repeat cycle, high resolution and larger
swath with capability of full-polarimetric and interferometric modes of operation. This science
mission is expected to provide an impetus to the understanding of various processes for land,
oceans and cryosphere in regional to global scales. NISAR data will address the critical issues ofdisaster management such as floods, forest fire, landslides, volcanoes, oil spills, earthquakes,
glacier melt, etc. apart from many other applications. The data will be freely available and will
be made available to Sentinel Asia users in addressing various disasters in member countries.

Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Lastly, what can you contribute to Sentinel Asia’s activities in the future and what do you expectfrom Sentinel Asia?
Dr. Raj Kumar
ISRO has been supporting Sentinel Asia and other international commitments, by providing all
the necessary Indian Remote Sensing satellite data as a DPN, based on the role ISRO has played
as a DAN for specific disaster events. ISRO has organized several international meetings andsymposia under Sentinel Asia, APRSAF, and the International Charter. Also, ISRO has
contributed significantly to capacity building on various disaster themes for the national andinternational community. ISRO is firmly committed to working towards achieving the goals of
Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 in building a society resilient todisaster risks. ISRO ensures that it will extend similar support to Sentinel Asia member countries
in the near future.
As ISRO requires satellite data from more space missions in microwave and optical regions frommember countries to address disasters in India, Sentinel Asia may facilitate the provision of suchdata. ISRO would look forward to collaborative research on disaster risk modelling and risk
reduction with expertise available among member countries on various disaster themes<About Dr. Raj Kumar >Dr. Raj Kumar received his master’s and Ph.D. degrees in physics from Lucknow University. He
has more than 100 publications in peer-reviewed journals of international repute and leading
many young researchers towards their Ph.D. Dr. Raj Kumar also plays a pivotal role in propelling
collaborations with international space agencies through various forums such as the Committee
on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS), the Coordination Group for Meteorological Satellites(CGMS), and the International Ocean Vector Winds Science Team (IOVWST). He currently coleads the CEOS COAST team with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA).
- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *3. [Event] Sentinel Asia Webinar "Space Technology for Flood Forecast Modelling" co-organizedby ISRO and IWMI was successfully held.
The webinar “Space Technology for Flood Forecast Modelling” was held on 27 and 28 October,jointly organized by ISRO and IWMI.

This webinar is a follow-on of the webinar on space-based drought risk management coorganized by ISRO and IWMI on 19 and 20 July, and featured, like its predecessor, general
theories, experts' lectures and an interactive session, among others. Stakeholders, engineers andresearchers participated in this webinar.
- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *4. How to send an Emergency Observation Request
JPT member organizations are entitled to send an Emergency Observation Request (EOR) for
disasters in the Asia-Pacific region. Please refer to https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html.
EOR Order Desk:
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)
HP: http://www.adrc.asia/
E-mail: sarequest@adrc.asia
FAX: +81-78-262-5546,
TEL: +81-78-262-5540- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS
Sentinel Asia launched a new operation system, OPTEMIS. Please refer to the website on how tocreateanaccount
for
OPTEMIS.
https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+=
Copyright 2021 the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Sentinel Asia Project OfficeSatellite Applications and Operations Center (SAOC)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Ochanomizu Sola City, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
E-mail: Z-SENTINEL.ASIA@ml.jaxa.jp
TEL: +81-3-6435-6785
FAX: +81-3-5777-1580

** November 2021 News from Sentinel Asia Project Office **- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *Topics:
1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters
2. [Interview] Dr. Kuang-Chong Wu, President of National Applied Research Laboratories(NARLabs), and Dr. Jong-Shinn Wu, Director General of National Space Organization (NSPO)
3. [News] Special Session on Sentinel Asia “Sentinel Asia for the ASEAN Region” under the
AHA Centre Executive Programme held on 17 November 2021
4. How to Send an Emergency Observation Request
5. Using the Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters (as of 25 November 2021)(1) Floods and Landslides in Vietnam (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000166-VNM)
From 22 to 25 October, heavy rainfall was recorded in Vietnam, causing widespread floods.
“VNExpress” reported that 11,000 houses were submerged, one person was killed and threeothers were missing.
(https://e.vnexpress.net/news/news/record-rainfall-deluges-central-vietnam-province4376382.html)
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) of Vietnam made an EOR to
Sentinel Asia on 25 October. Among Data Provider Nodes (DPNs), the Japan Aerospace
Exploration Agency (JAXA), the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), and the GeoInformatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) provided data. Among
DANs, the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) provided its VAPs. Information on the latest
response by Sentinel Asia is available at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211022VN.html

Satellite image (THEOS1) provided by GISTDA

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Value-Added Product by AIT(2) Floods and Landslides in Sri Lanka (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000188-LKA)
Heavy rain from the north-east monsoon in Sri Lanka caused floods and landslides. “India
Today” reported that at least 26 people have been killed and over 230,000 others affected as of
12 November.
(https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/people-killed-affected-extreme-weather-conditions-srilanka-1876063-2021-11-12)
The Disaster Management Center (DMC) of Sri Lanka made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 15
November. This EOR was escalated to the International Disasters Charter. AIT assumed therole of Project Manager for this Charter activation. Among Data Provider Nodes (DPNs),

JAXA provided data. Among DANs, AIT provided its VAPs. Information on the latest response
by Sentinel Asia is available at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211105LK.html

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

(3) Floods in India (GLIDE Number: FL-2021-000172-IND)
Heavy overnight rain led to flooding in several areas of southern India including the city ofChennai. CNN reported that there was more than 20 centimeters of rainfall in Chennai, theheaviest since 2015. (https://edition.cnn.com/2021/11/07/india/chennai-india-rain-flood-intlhnk/index.html)
ISRO made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 15 November. Among Data Provider Nodes (DPNs),
JAXA and the National Applied Research Laboratories (NARL) provided data. Among DANs,
AIT and the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) provided their VAPs. Informationon the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211107IN.html

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (Formosat-5) provided by NARL

Value-Added Product by MBRSC

Value-Added Product by AIT- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *2. [Interview] Dr. Kuang-Chong Wu, President of National Applied Research Laboratories(NARLabs), and Dr. Jong-Shinn Wu, Director General of National Space Organization (NSPO)The National Applied Research Laboratories (NARLabs) of Taiwan joined Sentinel Asia (SA)in 2010. Since then, NARLabs, along with the National Space Organization (NSPO), one of theinstitutes under NARLabs, continues to provide its satellite data to SA. Recently, they
contributed to the realization of SA operation system OPTEMIS in collaboration with
Academia Sinica from Taiwan and Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development
Agency (GISTDA). They are also working with the newly developed Taiwan Data Cube(TWDC) on the further application of Earth observation data. The SA secretariat interviewed
Dr. Kuang-Chong Wu, President of NARLabs, and Dr. Jong-Shinn Wu, Director General of
NSPO, to ask about their connection to SA and related contributions, past and future.

Dr. Kuang-Chong Wu, President of National Applied Research Laboratories (NARLabs)

Dr. Jong-Shinn Wu, Director General of National Space Organization (NSPO)

Sentinel Asia Secretariat
NARLabs and NSPO are long-time SA members in addition to being major players in thisregion. Could you introduce the missions and roles of each organization to readers?
Dr. Kuang-Chong Wu, NARLabs
NARLabs, the National Applied Research Laboratories, is the largest R&D organization underTaiwan’s Ministry of Science and Technology. We have four major missions: to establish R&D
platforms, to support academic research, to promote frontier science and technology, and tofoster high-tech manpower. There are eight research centers under the umbrella of NARLabs,
including NSPO, the National Space Organization, TORI, the Taiwan Ocean Research Institute,and NCREE, the National Center for Research on Earthquake Engineering.
Taiwan has a “2030 Science and Technology Vision,” which is to create an innovative,
inclusive, and sustainable society. With our earth and environment technology, NARLabs isready to support the Sendai Framework in building a disaster-resilient society. That’s why
NARLabs as a whole, not only NSPO, volunteered to join Sentinel Asia in 2010. In the past
decade, NARLabs has also invited partners from Taiwan’s Academia Sinica and National
Central University to collaborate with the Sentinel Asia family. Looking back at the evolution

of Sentinel Asia, NSPO has made many contributions. NARLabs has more to offer when we
expand our work from disaster response to preparedness/mitigation and the recovery phase.
Dr. Jong-Shinn Wu/NSPONSPO is the only national space research organization in Taiwan. We have nearly 300
employees working for national missions, most of which are satellite projects, and are very
happy to cooperate with the Sentinel Asia.
Secretariat
You mentioned that NARLabs had also invited partners from the National Central University tojoin Sentinel Asia. Does NARLabs collaborate with universities and other institutes under
NARLabs for SA activities?
NARLabs
Universities are not under NARLabs, but all of our centers work very closely with them. Also,
there are other institutes for ocean research, earthquake engineering, and supercomputing that
we work with. They are not SA members, but our data are on the Open Data Cube, which we
cooperate on. We will continue to find future opportunities to engage in discussions with suchinstitutes and bring them into our framework of cooperation when needed.
Secretariat
The Sentinel Asia Secretariat appreciates Team Taiwan for its long-time support to SA as a
DPN and a DAN. Could you highlight some of your contributions to past EORs?
Dr. Jong-Shinn Wu/NSPOThe most significant effort, I think, is that related to the Great East Japan Earthquake andtsunami in 2011. In that tragic disaster, NSPO worked very closely with JAXA to schedule joint
observation by FORMOSAT-2 and ALOS-2 of the disaster for a one-month period. The firstimage captured by FORMASAT-2 after the tsunami struck was shown on the front page of the
SA website.
In 2010 and 2021, NSPO has contributed to Sentinel Asia activities as a Data Provider Node.
NSPO as a DPN has successfully responded to various Emergency Observation Requests(EORs) pertaining to 23 countries and 173 major disaster relief activities with FORMOSAT-2
and FORMOSAT-5 satellite datasets comprising before and after events.
Secretariat
The Secretariat also appreciates your support to the Sentinel Asia Step 3 system. We think it is asignificant achievement in SA Step 3 activities that this system is operated under multinational
cooperation, combined with OPTEMIS provided by GISTDA. What role did you have in the

OPTEMIS operation?
Dr. Jong-Shinn Wu/NSPOThe Sentinel Asia Step 3 system was developed by the SA Step 3 technical team, which
consists of Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) of Japan, GISTDA of Thailand,
NARLabs, and Academia Sinica Grid-computing Centre (ASGC) of Taiwan. The Step 3 system
is a cloud-based system that aims to improve the data efficiency and security of the previous
generation SA system. In this system, the GISTDA-provided OPTEMIS is used as theoperational interface and the system is hosted on NARLabs/ASGC using cloud infrastructure.
The tech team was organized in April 2019, and resulting system development activities wereconducted at three different sites and through monthly Web meetings and a face-to-facemeeting in June 2019 in Taipei. Finally, the SA Step 3 system was released online andannounced operational in October 2019 as planned. The new system provides up-to-datefunctionalities from an ICT technical point of view for Sentinel Asia disaster relief andmitigation activities. The more important achievement is the mechanism of multinational
cooperation and the process of distributed implementation, which can serve as a success story
for future cooperation.
Secretariat
Indeed, this is a success story. Sentinel Asia has evolved stepwise from the pilot project phase
into the current operational phase, “Step 3,” and in this phase, Sentinel Asia aims at “joint
implementation,” whereby each member of JPT-3 is recommended to share its resources inorder to achieve more effective and sustainable operation. This contribution by NSPO andAcademia Sinica perfectly matches this ideal.
Could you tell us how this cooperation started?
Dr. Jong-Shinn Wu/NSPO
After 10 years of working closely with Sentinel Asia as a core DPN, we thought we could
contribute further by providing Taiwan’s famous ICT and cloud services. In January 2019,NSPO represented NARLabs and signed an agreement with SA Step 3 Joint Project Team toprovide cloud service for the SA Step 3 system. The selected cloud service provider ASGC in
Taiwan is a long-term partner of NSPO, and helps to bring FORMOSAT data from Svalbard
receiving station back to Taiwan. They are both technically capable and familiar with the
FORMOSAT operational environment, which can be integrated into the system development
team efficiently. The later successful experience of implementing the Step 3 system on timedemonstrates this. The Step 3 system has been operational now for more than two years, withan availability of 99.9%. NSPO, NARLabs, and ASGC will provide further necessary
assistance to fulfill SA’s future operational needs in order to contribute to regional disasterhumanitarian relief.

Secretariat
Recently, you started operation of Taiwan Data Cube. Could you introduce this system, andhow do you evaluate its benefit to the Sentinel Asia Community?
Dr. Jong-Shinn Wu/NSPOCurrently Taiwan Data Cube (TWDC) has been established in NSPO to manage and operate
analysis-ready data acquired by FORMOSAT series satellites and other open-source, remotesensing satellites. The features of TWDC are:-Provision of analysis-ready data for FORMOSAT-2 and FORMOSAT-5 and other open
satellite data;-

High-performance cloud computing environment maintained by National Center for
High-performance Computing;-

Development and execution of data analysis in a cloud computing environment;
Provision of public and private cubes, with authorized users able to access data ofvarious cubes.

It is not free for all use cases. For large commercial users, we charge only management costbecause it is mostly built with open sources.
For the latter question, we evaluate its benefit by two major points:-

Taiwan Data Cube applications are showcased to highlight the value of Earth
Observation for SDGs. They properly connect data and users.

-

Value-added products can be easily made available to the stakeholders in the form ofopen data cubes, in the public domain.

Secretariat
Could you tell us about past and future contributions of the FORMOSAT satellite series, related
to disaster monitoring and early recovery, to the SA community?
Dr. Jong-Shinn Wu/NSPOFirst, one of the characteristics of the FORMOSAT satellite series is its short repeat cycle orbit.
This means that the imagery data are especially suited for regular monitoring of rapidlychanging situations, such as in effective response in the aftermath of a disaster. We follow
emergency management planning guides to process the EOR in the response stage to support
the SA community for disaster management. In the past 10 years, FORMOSAT satellites havesupported time series observations to help disaster agencies in the Asia-Pacific region assess theextent of damage, facilitating early recovery. The data have been applied in various types of
EOR during the early phases of crises. Examples include object-based image classification
using change detection to obtain damage assessment data and detection of flooding areas frommultispectral data.

Second, Formosat-2 and Formosat-5 data can be used in satellite image artificial intelligencecorrection research; the training data sets can be applied in AI applications such as compilingmaps and rice field detection programs.
Finally, in the future remote sensing program, we are considering Formosat-8, for which there
are plans to develop six remote sensing satellites, constructing a constellation, for global
coverage and multiple local revisits. It will be able to acquire data more frequently, with highspatial coverage. Furthermore, it is also expected to achieve not only more abundant spectral
information but also higher spatial resolution. We believe that this program can contribute
further benefits to overall disaster assessment for the SA community.
To be more specific, and for your information, Formasat-8 will have 1-meter resolution forpanchromatic and 2-meter resolution for multi-spectral, with 12-kilometer swath. It was
originally planned to be launched in 2023, but now it will be in 2024 due to the COVID-19
pandemic. Formasat-8 consists of six satellites, A to F, and the constellation enables us toshorten the revisit time, which is three times per day for the Taiwan area. We are now planning
the orbit but some of them will observe in morning and others will do so in afternoon, which
will contribute to disaster monitoring.
Secretariat
Could you tell us what you expect from Sentinel Asia and about your future plans to support it?
Dr. Kuang-Chong Wu/NARLabs
Recently I have seen that Sentinel Asia is proactively working on several strategic plans in the
Step 3 phase. The efforts are aimed at several important issues such as improving efficiency
and building private–public partnerships. Among the goals set in the SDGs’ agenda, “Leave noone behind” is the first thing that I expect from Sentinel Asia. We in the Asia-Pacific region,
including Taiwan, are constantly facing various threats from natural hazards, so I am very glad
we joined Sentinel Asia. During the past decade, we provided assistance to others who needed
it, and conversely, we received assistance when we needed it through the Sentinel Asia
community. I hope that we did not leave any one behind, especially those who do not own
technology and do not have resources to reach out for help. The second is that I’d like to see
Sentinel Asia in the global picture. The community could establish mechanisms to exchange
experiences with other regional/global communities so that they can learn from each other.
About future plans to support it, earlier this year, Taiwan passed the "Space Development Act."
Since then, the Ministry of Science and Technology has focused on completing related
regulations including those for “Establishing the National Space Center as an Executive Legal
Entity," in order to lay a long-lasting foundation for Taiwan's space development. Then,sometime in the next year, NARLabs and NSPO will become separate entities. As I had
mentioned earlier, in addition to NSPO’s capabilities, NARLabs has more to offer in Step 3,
especially when Sentinel Asia expands research from disaster response to the preparedness,
mitigation, and recovery phases. Among these capabilities, the most important one is theestablishment of a regional Open Data Cube. We have proposed this platform to the Steering
Committee for a decision. If it is adopted as an infrastructure, I believe the interoperability will
significantly improve the operational efficiency. In addition, we recently encouraged NCREE tojoin Sentinel Asia. NCREE and National Taiwan University are combining AI and satellite
remote-sensing data to conduct landslide susceptibility analysis. Moreover, TORI has
developed an Ocean Bottom Seismometer Observation system. In a joint research project with
the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), the observation data
provided better understanding of the science of tectonic evolution and the dynamics of multisubduction zones. Building on the success of what we have achieved together in the past
decade, we will, with all our efforts, support and safeguard our homeland with all partners in
the Sentinel Asia community.
- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *3. [News] Special Session on Sentinel Asia “Sentinel Asia for the ASEAN Region” under the
AHA Centre Executive Programme held on 17 November 2021
“The AHA Centre Executive Programme (ACE Programme)” is an over 4-month training course
conducted by the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on disastermanagement (AHA Centre) with a view to developing future leaders of national disastermanagement offices (NDMOs) in ASEAN countries. Started in 2014, this year marks the 7thbatch of the programme. As its vision states, many of the alumni of previous batches of ACE
Programme have been already representing and leading their NDMOs.
Prof. Mizan Bisri of Kobe University (JPT member organization based in Japan) had been
appointed by the AHA Centre to facilitate to liaise with Japanese-base resources for the
programme and organized the “Japan Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Online Course” from 15
to 18 November 2021, as part of the ACE Programme. As part of the Japan DRR Online Course,
an invitation was extended to the Sentinel Asia Secretariat for organizing a dedicated joint session
composed of speakers from Japan-based Sentinel Asia JPT member organizations.
The joint session was held on 17 November 2021, with the title “Sentinel Asia: Space-based
disaster risk management support for the benefit of the Asia-Pacific region ~Sentinel Asia for the
ASEAN Region~”. More than 30 future young leaders from 24 NDMOs (as well as AHA Centre
staff members) attended the session. Experts from the Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC),
the University of Tokyo, and the JAXA/Sentinel Asia Secretariat gave lectures and hands-on
training courses. The thematic topics of the training courses include “How to make Emergency

Observation Requests (EORs) to Sentinel Asia”; “How to utilize Web-GIS system for obtaining
tangible damage information”; and “Extraction of building footprints from satellite data.” At theend of the session, information on many other training opportunities by JPT members including
those who were not at the session was also introduced, and participants whose organizations are
not yet JPT members were strongly encouraged to make applications for membership.
The organizing team is convinced that, as the outcome of the session, participants have become
familiar with the significance and benefits (including ones to be upgraded in the future) of
Sentinel Asia and how they can enjoy such benefits. Through this joint session with the AHA
Centre and Kobe University, the partnership between NDMOs of ASEAN member states andSentinel Asia has been further strengthened.

- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *4. How to send an Emergency Observation Request
JPT member organizations are entitled to send an Emergency Observation Request (EOR) for
disasters in the Asia-Pacific region. Please refer to https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html.

EOR Order Desk:
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)
HP: http://www.adrc.asia/
E-mail: sarequest@adrc.asia

FAX: +81-78-262-5546,
TEL: +81-78-262-5540- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *5. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS
Sentinel Asia launched a new operation system, OPTEMIS. Please refer to the website on how tocreateanaccount
for
OPTEMIS.
https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+=
Copyright 2021 the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Sentinel Asia Project OfficeSatellite Applications and Operations Center (SAOC)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Ochanomizu Sola City, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
E-mail: Z-SENTINEL.ASIA@ml.jaxa.jp
TEL: +81-3-6435-6785
FAX: +81-3-5777-1580

** December 2021 News from Sentinel Asia Project Office **- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *Topics:
1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters
2. [Event] Summary report of the Sentinel Asia session at the APRSAF-27
3. [Report] Brief Report on Sentinel Asia Training Programme on “Space Technology for Flood
Forecast Modelling” organized by NRSC (ISRO), and IWMI under Sentinel Asia (*article
contribution from ISRO and IWMI)
4. [Report] Sentinel Asia Annual Report 2020 has been published!
5. How to Send an Emergency Observation Request
6. Using the Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *1. [News] Emergency Observation of Disasters (as of 27 December 2021)(1) Volcanic eruption influence in the Philippines (GLIDE Number: VO-2021-000191-PHL)
In August 2021, Fukutoku Okanoba volcano, an underwater volcano in Japanese territory,
erupted and ejected a huge amount of pumice stones and debris. These stones floated on the sea
surface and a portion of them reached the Philippine coast.
(https://mb.com.ph/2021/11/23/pumice-stones-debris-spewed-by-japans-underwater-volcanoreach-batanes-shores/)
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) made an EOR to
Sentinel Asia on 24 November. This EOR was escalated to the International Disasters Charter.
PHIVOLCS assumed the role of Project Manager for this Charter activation. Among Data
Analysis Nodes (DANs), the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) provided its
VAPs. Information on the latest response by Sentinel Asia is available at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211123PH.html

Value-Added Product by MBRSC(2) Volcanic eruption in Indonesia (GLIDE Number: VO-2021-000194-IDN)
On 4 December 2021, Mount Semeru volcano in Indonesia erupted and produced a hot cloudavalanche with volcanic materials and heavy ashfall. According to ReliefWeb, the Indonesian
National Board for Disaster Management (BNPB) reported that the number of fatalities had
increased to 15, with 27 people missing and 169 injured. More than 1,700 people weredisplaced across 19 refugee posts, and 5,205 people and 2,970 houses were affected.
(https://reliefweb.int/disaster/vo-2021-000194-idn/)
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 7
December. This EOR was escalated to the International Disasters Charter. The Asian Instituteof Technology (AIT) assumed the role of Project Manager for this Charter activation. Among
Data Provider Nodes (DPNs), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the IndianSpace Research Organization (ISRO), and the National Applied Research Laboratories (NARL)
provided data. Among DANs, the Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS), Yamaguchi
University, and MBRSC provided their VAPs. Information on the latest response by Sentinel
Asia is available at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211123PH.html

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2) provided by ISRO

Value-Added Product by EOS

Value-Added Product by Yamaguchi University

Value-Added Product by MBRSC(3) Tropical Storm Odette in the Philippines (GLIDE Number: TC-2021-000202-PHL)
Super Typhoon Rai (Odette) made landfall on the Philippines on 16 December 2021.
ReliefWeb reported that according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction andManagement Council (NDRRMC) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development(DSWD), it killed at least 258 people, injuring 568 people and displacing 631,000 people as of
23 December.
Manila Observatory (MO) made an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 15 December anticipating theapproach of the typhoon. Among Data Provider Nodes (DPNs), JAXA, ISRO, NARL, and theGeo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) provided data.
Among DANs, EOS and AIT provided their VAPs. Information on the latest response by
Sentinel Asia is available at the following link:
https://sentinel-asia.org/EO/2021/article20211123PH.html

Satellite image (ALOS-2) provided by JAXA

Satellite image (Resourcesat-2A) provided by ISRO

Satellite image (Formosat-5) provided by NARL

Satellite image (Theos-1) provided by GISTDA

Value-Added Product by EOS

Value-Added Product by AIT

- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *2. [Event] Summary report of the Sentinel Asia session at the APRSAF-27
The 27th session of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF-27) was held
online from 30 November to 3 December 2021. The APRSAF-27 was co-organized by the
Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), the Ministry of Education, Culture,
Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan, and JAXA with the slogan “Expand Space
Innovation through Diverse Partnerships.”
On 1 December, a dedicated Sentinel Asia session was organized and hosted by the Sentinel
Asia Secretariat in close collaboration with the Steering Committee members as part of Satellite
Applications for Societal Benefit Working Group (SAWG) of the APRSAF-27. The session
heard the following six presentations:(1) “Sentinel Asia - Trend of Emergency Observation Request” (ADRC)(2) “Sentinel Asia Status Report” (JAXA)(3) “NSPO-NARLabs Engagement in Sentinel Asia” (NARLabs/NSPO)(4) “Integration of Satellite data and Crowdsourced information through a Mobile App for
the Sentinel Asia” (GIC/AIT)(5) “Development of Mirror Target Calibration for Optical Satellite Data” (Yamaguchi
University)(6) “Using Earth Observation to help Pacific countries managing disaster risk reduction
and response” (Pacific Earth Observation Council)
Through the Sentinel Asia session itself and its report by the SAWG co-chair in the high-levelsegment of the APRSAF (Plenary Session), the APRSAF-27 witnessed the development of theSentinel Asia Step-3 system, led by the Technical Team composed of GISTDA,
NARLabs/NSPO with Academia Sinica, and JAXA. The APRSAF-27 noted that the Sentinel
Asia community had significantly upgraded its activities to address the entire disastermanagement cycle, with the contribution to the Sendai Framework in mind. Such activities
included the establishment of “Standard Operating Procedure for making Emergency
Observation Request (EOR) to Sentinel Asia” in several countries, a mobile application forsharing in-situ disaster information developed by AIT, a project by Yamaguchi University
aimed at enhancing the reliability of optical satellite data, and an initiative by the University ofTokyo to extract building map from satellite data. Finally, the APRSAF-27 appreciated that
NARLabs/NSPO had expressed their intention to provide Sentinel Asia with Formosat-8
satellite data after its launch.

- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *3. [Report] Brief Report on Sentinel Asia Training Programme on “Space Technology for Flood
Forecast Modelling” organized by NRSC (ISRO), and IWMI under Sentinel Asia (*article
contribution from ISRO and IWMI)
Background
Sentinel Asia is an international cooperation platform in which space agencies, disastermanagement agencies, and international organizations collaborate to combat natural disasters in
the Asia-Pacific region on voluntary basis by using earth observation satellite data and WebGIS technologies. Towards building a disaster-resilient society, the Sentinel Asia community
has envisaged capacity-building programmes in strengthening of Sentinel Asia activities. To
address such need, at the Joint Project Team Meeting in Bangkok in 2019, a specific Training
Workshop was organized for the first time in which member organizations mutually train with
their respective expertise and knowledge. In the Training Workshop, Indian Space Research
Organisation (ISRO) and International Water Management Institute (IWMI) conducted training
programmes on “topological and hydrological modelling”, and “emergency response mapping
using multisource satellite data”. During the Sentinel Asia steering committee (SC) meetingorganised in 2020 in Hyderabad, India, further discussions took place on strengthening thecapacity-building programmes under Sentinel Asia. Following the SC meeting in 2020, ISROand IWMI jointly proposed to expand the achievements, by volunteering themselves inproviding capacity building for the benefit of the Sentinel Asia community. To begin with, thefollowing capacity-building programmes were envisaged under Sentinel Asia:(1) Space Technology for Drought Risk Management by National Remote Sensing Centre(NRSC)/ISRO, India in association with IWMI during 19-20 July, 2021
(2) Space Technology for Flood Forecast Modelling by NRSC/ISRO in association withIWMI during 27-28 October, 2021
(3) Emergency Response Mapping and Crisis Management by IWMI in association with
ADRC and NRSC/ISRO in February 2022 (TBC).
Following the successful completion of the first capacity-building programme, the second Asia
Pacific webinar on Space Technology for Flood Forecasting has been jointly organised by
NRSC/ISRO and IWMI. About 80 participants from 13 Sentinel Asia countries/regions
including ISRO and IWMI have participated in the programme. The training programme wascoordinated by the Sentinel Asia Secretariat.
Flood Forecasting and Space Technology
In recent decades, flood damage trends have been increasing exponentially across the globe.
This is a consequence of change in climatic conditions, changes in upstream land use and acontinuously increasing concentration of population and assets in flood-prone areas. A varietyof mitigation measures can be implemented to minimize the impact of flooding. Satellite
technology can provide vital information on the hydrology and topography of the catchmentthat plays a major role in spatial flood early warning. Flood forecasting is one of the best nonstructural methods of flood damage mitigation being adopted globally. Remote sensing
satellites provide key data for monitoring floods and cyclones in near real time. While spatial
flood forecast modelling forms the keystone during the preparedness phase, flood forecasting
provides an edge by proving the information well before the occurrence of the event. This flood
forecasting is one of the best non-structural methods of flood damage mitigation methods thatcan give spatial flood alerts well in advance of the event. Due to the availability of highresolution digital terrain models, as well as advanced hardware and software, early warnings
and alerts for spatial floods are gaining importance in recent years. Satellite technology canprovide vital information on the hydrology and topography of the catchment that plays a majorrole in spatial flood early warning.
Scope of the training programme
Capacity building is a powerful tool in disaster risk reduction and a very important element
towards building a disaster-risk-resilient society. The objective of the programme has been to
appraise the participants from Sentinel Asia member countries/regions on the potential andcurrent status of EO technologies in operational flood forecast modelling and spatial floodinundation modelling using hydrological and hydrodynamic modelling techniques.
The programme has consisted of expert presentations/lectures and an interactive session to
make it more impactful. The scope for augmenting applications of technology, research data
gaps, its limitations and information-sharing opportunities were planned and documented forthe future course of action towards promoting the technology for flood disaster risk reduction.
Proceedings of the 2-day training programme (27-28 Oct 2021)
This webinar brought together a total of around 80 experts and practitioners from different
Sentinel Asia member countries/regions. The inaugural Session of the training Programme
included a welcome by Dr. V. V. Rao, Deputy Director, Remote Sensing Applications, NRSC
and brief remarks by (a) Mr. Miyoshi Takanori, Sentinel Asia Secretariat, (b) Dr. Mark Smith,Director General, IWMI, and (c) Dr. Raj Kumar, Director, NRSC. The 2-day webinar was
conducted for the Asia Pacific region during 27-28 October, 2021. This is the second webinar
conducted by ISRO in association with IWMI in continuation to the Drought Webinar as part ofthe capacity-building event of this kind in which Sentinel Asia members mutually help build
capacity with their respective experience and expertise. In this inaugural session, it was stressedthat the Sentinel Asia community would continue to support and foster mutual capacity
building among members through cooperation. The inaugural session was completed with aformal vote of thanks by Dr. K H V Durga Rao, NRSC, ISRO.

During the key remarks, experts emphasized that floods are an important hydro-meteorologicaldisaster causing huge economic losses with cascading effects, hence the need for using spacebased inputs as a solution coupled with institutional partnership and the importance ofcommunity awareness in bringing effective flood disaster risk reduction was highlighted. The
ever-increasing flood frequency and magnitude of disastrous flood events especially in South
Asia and Southeast Asia is a major cause of concern. Therefore, this current training
programme was quite relevant to develop understanding among the participants of the nature ofdisasters and the scope for new technologies to minimise/mitigate losses from such disasters
using space technology for predicting and forecasting flood events in advance to enablesufficient lead time to respond. All the speakers in the inaugural Session have indicated theneed for organising flood management-related capacity-building programmes, more frequently
for the benefit of Sentinel Asia member countries/regions.

Fig 1: Inaugural Session of 2-day Webinar on Space Technology for Flood Forecasting &Modelling on Oct 27, 2021 (Virtual Mode)
Technical Session – 1: In this session, four presentations were given. It started with a briefpresentation on “Hydrological Modelling” by NRSC, setting the base for the rest of thepresentations. The presentation highlighted the importance of flood forecasting, different
methods of flood forecasting, routing methods and deriving the hydrological and hydrodynamic
parameters for flood forecasting using space-based inputs.
The second presentation in this Session was a demo on Flood Forecasting Modelling by NRSC,
ISRO. The demo was addressed in introducing the participants to Hydrological Modellingusing open-source modelling software of HEC-HMS (Hydrological Engineering CentreHydrological Modelling System) and its utility. Topographic parameter extraction using
satellite-based inputs like DEM (Digital Elevation Model), LULC (Land Use and Land Cover),and Soils were demonstrated. Preparation of meteorological models and integration with basinmodels was discussed. Flood forecast hydrograph computation, its calibration and validation
were also demonstrated.
The third presentation in this Session was on Flood Inundation Simulation Modelling using ahigh-resolution Digital Terrain Model (DTM) by NRSC, ISRO. The presentation highlighted
the stark differences between satellite-based flood mapping and flood inundation simulation
using hydrological and hydrodynamic inputs with DEM as a primary input. It has brought out
the need for flood inundation simulation and different models being used globally for deriving
inundation simulation followed by the data requirements. The presentation also brought out theadvantages and disadvantages of both 1D and 2D approaches and their relevance for simulation
under different flow conditions.
Day 1 of the technical session concluded with a demo on flood inundation simulation using
open-source software (HEC-RAS) by NRSC, ISRO. The demo showcased the creation of aterrain model, geometric mesh, boundary conditions and running the simulation in 2D unsteadyflow condition for one of the reaches of Sabari River, India, as a case study. The demo
concluded with results showing the water depth, velocity, etc. and an animation showing theflood progression and recession in an interactive session with the participants.
Technical session 2: In this session, there were six presentations. The day started formally witha recap of Day 1 and a discussion on the various presentations delivered on Day 1 by Dr. K H V
Durga Rao. Subsequently, the first presentation of Day 2 was an invited lecture on
Cyclogenesis, Forecasting Systems and Extreme Rainfall events by an expert speaker from theIndia Meteorological Department. The presentation gave good insight into the approaches
followed in India and elsewhere on genesis, formation, prediction of landfall and dissipation of
cyclonic systems and various aspects related to cyclone-based impacts on weather systems. The
presentation highlighted technical elements related to forecasting systems on cyclones andstorm surges and the impact of extreme rainfall events on land processes.
The second presentation in this session was on flood forecasting and early warning system inthe cloud framework by IWMI Sri Lanka. The presentation focused on the importance of cloudbased services for flood forecasting and early warning systems for large basins and theirimportance in reducing computation time and storage requirements. Further, the presentation
showcased the success stories of risk transfer/flood insurance in the Bagmati basin of Nepal
and has ascertained the importance of flood insurance as a land-use regulation practice andincentivising people. It also showcased the success story of the Zambezi basin case study inWest Africa.
The third presentation in this session was an invited lecture on urban flood modelling by Indian
Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay. The presentation discussed at length the concepts ofhazard, risk and vulnerability in urban floods. It clearly brought out the different types ofvulnerabilities and how to derive various parameters to derive flood risk maps. The
presentation concluded with case studies of urban flood modelling of Mumbai city, deriving offlood risk assessment maps for the Mithi river and part of the Mahanadi basin, Odisha State,
and also introduced the participants to various models that can be implemented to address
urban flood modelling.
The fourth presentation of the day was on an operational flood early warning system - casestudies by NRSC, ISRO. The presentation covered the development of spatial flood forecast
model for the Tapi and Godavari River Basins, India, using space-based inputs. It also covered
spatial flood inundation simulation models using a high-resolution digital terrain model andweb-enabled spatial flood early warning system. Real-time operation using IMD rainfall data
was presented during the session.
In the brief session on interactive presentations, there were two presentations by participantsfrom the Philippines and Singapore. The presentation by the Philippine AtmosphericGeophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) showcased the disasterprofile of their country, frequency and magnitudes of floods and cyclones, measures for
mitigating / responding to various disasters, disaster management in their country, satellitederived ready-data products, flood inundation modelling, etc.
The presentation by Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS) included a brief presentation on
microwave data analysis for flood response and intricacies in analysing the microwave data toderive flood inundation layers. The presentation also comprised case studies related to flood
mapping and monitoring in their country.
Some of the participants interacted with the experts on specific aspects of drought occurrencein their regions and the scope for developing customised information products.
Concluding remarks
The Sentinel Asia Secretariat extended its gratitude to ISRO and IWMI for organizing thiswebinar, by reiterating the significance of capacity-building activities and recalling the previous
webinar on drought management conducted by ISRO and IWMI in July 2021. He expressed his
wishes and continued support to expand this endeavor for the benefit of the Sentinel Asia
community.
ISRO and IWMI indicated that with the availability of open-access satellite data and easilyaccessible advanced techniques such as cloud platforms, it is possible to develop robust flood
monitoring and management systems for timely action to reduce flood risks. It was also
concluded that a regional cooperation mechanism among the Sentinel Asia member
countries/regions needed to be established further to share the analysis-ready flood-related data,
knowledge and expertise for enhancing flood disaster risk-reduction capabilities.

Webinar brochure with details of technical presentations

- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *4. [Report] Sentinel Asia Annual Report 2020 has been published!
Sentinel Asia’s activity report for the year 2020 has been published. The report features, among
others, (i) a detailed review on EORs conducted in 2020 including good practices. (ii) external
relations such as news, publications, and reports on conferences, and (iii) an analytical survey of
Sentinel Asia’s operations.
In 2020, Sentinel Asia’s annual general meeting “Joint Project Team Meeting (JPTM)” wasforced to be called off due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this regard, this Annual Reportprovided JPT members with an alternative opportunity to report their Sentinel Asia-related
activities, which would have been provided as part of the JPTM. In response to the invitation by
the Sentinel Asia secretariat team, 24 JPT members contributed their activity reports, which are
printed in the Appendix section of the Annual Report.
The Annual Report is available on the Sentinel Asia webpage athttps://sentinel-asia.org/reports/Reports/SA_Annual_Report_2020.pdf

- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *5. How to send an Emergency Observation Request
JPT member organizations are entitled to send an Emergency Observation Request (EOR) for
disasters in the Asia-Pacific region. Please refer to https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html.
EOR Order Desk:
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)
HP: http://www.adrc.asia/
E-mail: sarequest@adrc.asia
FAX: +81-78-262-5546,
TEL: +81-78-262-5540- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *- * - * - * - * - * - *6. Using Sentinel Asia Operation System, OPTEMIS
Sentinel Asia launched a new operation system, OPTEMIS. Please refer to the website on how tocreateanaccount
for
OPTEMIS.
https://sentinel-asia.org/elearning/Emergency_Observation_Request.html+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+===+=
Copyright 2021 the Sentinel Asia Secretariat
Sentinel Asia Project OfficeSatellite Applications and Operations Center (SAOC)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Ochanomizu Sola City, 4-6 Kandasurugadai, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8008 Japan
E-mail: Z-SENTINEL.ASIA@ml.jaxa.jp
TEL: +81-3-6435-6785
FAX: +81-3-5777-1580

List of JPT Members(94 organizations from 28 countries/regions and 17 international organizations)
No.

Country / Region

No.

1

Armenia1

Ministry of Emergency Situation (MES)2

CSIRO Office of Space Science and Applications (COSSA)

2Australia

3

Geoscience Australia (GA)4

Bureau of Meteorology (BOM)

3

Bangladesh

5

6

4

Bhutan5

Brunei6

Cambodia

China

Sherubtse College, Royal University of Bhutan
Department of Geology and Mines (DGM)10

Ministry of Works and Human Settlement (MoWHS)

11

Survey Department (SD), Ministry of Development

9

Fiji

India

Construction
National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM)
National Disaster Reduction Center of China (NDRCC),
Ministry of Civil Affair
College of Disaster and Emergency Management, Beijing
Normal University (BNU)✔

17

Sichuan University✔

18

The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK)✔

Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment (IMHE),
National Disaster Management Office, FIJI (NDMO)

21

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO)

22

University of Kashmir

23

Gauhati University

26

Symbiosis Institute of Geoinformatics (SIG) , Symbiosis
International University (SIU)
Indonesian National Institute of Aeronautics and Space(LAPAN)
Institute of Technology Bandung (ITB)

28

Universitas Jenderal Achmad Yani (UNJANI)

30
31

✔

✔

✔

National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB)

27

29

✔

Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)20

25Indonesia

Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning andInstitute of Geology, China Earthquake Administration (CEA)

24

10

✔

16

19
8

Cultural Affairs

915

Node (DAN)

Department of Disaster Management, Ministry of Home andNational Land Commission

14

Node (DPN)

Organization (SPARRSO)

8

12Data Provider Data Analysis

Bangladesh Space Research and remote Sensing

7

13

7

Organization

Center for Remote Sensing and Ocean Sciences (CReSOS)
Udayana University
Center of Technology for Natural Resources Inventory (PTISDA BPPT)

Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries

✔

✔
✔
✔

11

Japan

32

Keio University

33

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)

34

Infrastructure Development Institute (IDI) Japan (IFNet)

35

Hokkaido University

36

Yamaguchi University✔

37

Chubu University✔

38

Chiba University✔

39

Hiroshima Institute of Technology✔

40

Tokyo Institute of Technology (TIT)

✔

41
42
43

12

Kazakhstan

13

Korea

14

Kyrgyz15

Lao P.D.R.

16

17

18

Malaysia

Mongolia

Myanmar✔

University
University of Tokyo✔

National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster✔

Resilience (NIED)Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)

45

RIKEN

✔

46

Kobe University✔

47

National Center of Space Researches and Technologies (NCSRT)✔

48

Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI)

49

National Disaster Management Research Institute (NDMI)✔

50

Central Asian Institute of Applied Geosciences (CAIAG)✔

51

Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare

52

National Security Division, Prime Minister's Department

Malaysian National Space Agency (ANGKASA)
Information And Research Institute Of Meteorology,
Hydrology And Environment (IRIMHE)

56

Department of Meteorology and Hydrology (DMH)

57

Relief and Resettlement Department (RRD)

60
61
62

✔

Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE)

54
55

✔

Natural Resources and Environment Institute (NREI),

53

59

Nepal

International Research Institute of Disaster Science, Tohoku

✔

44

58

19

✔

Myanmar Earthquake Committee (MEC) , Myanmar
Engineering Society (MES)
Survey Department (SD)
Department of Water Induced Disaster Management (DWIDM),
Ministry of Irrigation

Land Management Training Centre
Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHM), Ministryof Population & Environment✔

20

Pakistan

63

21

Papua New Guinea

64
65
66

67

68
22

Philippines

69

70

71
72
73

23

24

25

Singapore

Sri Lanka

TaiwanThailand✔

(SUPARCO)
National Disaster Centre (NDC)
Office of Civil Defense (OCD), National Disaster Risk Reduction
and Management Council (NDRRMC)

National Mapping and Resource Information Authority✔

(NAMRIA)
Bureau of Soils and Water Management (BSWM),
Department of Agriculture
Mines and Geoscience Bureau (MGB), Department ofEnvironment and Natural Resources
Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical✔

Services Administration (PAGASA)
Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging
Technology Research and Development (PCIEERD)
Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology✔

(PHIVOLCS)
Manila Observatory (MO)✔

NOAH Center of the University of the Philippines Resilience✔

Institute

74

Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing (CRISP)

75

Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS)✔

76

Survey Department of Sri Lanka✔

77

Ministry of Disaster Management

78

National Applied Research Laboratories (NARL)

79

80

26

Pakistan Space & Upper Atmosphere Research Commission(GISTDA)
Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM)

82

Department of Water Resources (DWR)

83

Royal Forest Department (RFD)84

National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department

85

Royal Irrigation Department (RID)86Land Development Department (LDD)
Andaman Environment and Natural Disaster ResearchCenter, Prince of Songkla University (ANED, PSU)✔
✔

Central University (CSRSR, NCU)
Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency✔

✔
✔

Center for Space and Remote Sensing Research, National

81

87

✔

✔

✔

✔

27 United Arab Emirates

28

Vietnam88

Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC)

✔

✔

89

Vietnamese Academy of Science and Technology (VAST)

✔

✔

90

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD)

91

Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE)

92

Cartography Department, Ministry of Defense (MOD)93

Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST)

94

Asian Institute of Technology (AIT)The ASEAN Secretariat

99
100
International(VIGMR)

96

98

29

Vietnam Institute of Geosciences and Mineral Resources

95

97

101

Organization✔

✔

United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asiaand the Pacific (UNESCAP)
United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA)International Center for Integrated Mountain Development✔

(ICIMOD)CSIRO Office of Space Science and Applications (COSSA)International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management(ICHARM)

102

Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)✔

103

Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC/SOPAC)✔

104

The World Bank (WB)

105

International Water Management Institute (IWMI)✔

106

Asian Development Bank (ADB)✔

107

ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on
disaster management (AHA Centre)

108

World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) - Pakistan

109

Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC)✔

110

Myanmar Information Management Unit (MIMU)✔

111

UN World Food Programme (WFP)

✔
8

53

as of Dec 2020

Emergency Observation Requests (2007 - 2021)

Number of requested EOR (by each disaster)

Activation

Rejection

Percentage ofActivation

Volcanic
Eruption

RequestNumber of requested EOR (by year)

Indonesia

60

53

7

88.3

7

2

5

9

2

4

2

Vietnam

56

50

6

89.3

2

2

4

7

2

1

2

Philippine

50

48

2

96.0

1

1

6

1

4

4

3

1

2

4

4

2

5

4

8

50

15

30.0

9

India

32

28

4

87.5

1

4

3

1

2

2

1

2

1

3

3

5

4

32

19

59.4

Japan

26

26

0

100.0

1

4

1

3

3

2

1

2

3

2

2

26

12

Nepal

22

21

1

95.5

2

1

2

1

1

1

4

2

2

1

22

Sri Lanka

16

15

1

93.8

1

2

2

1

1

1

1

1

2

3

Taiwan

15

15

0

100.0

2

1

2

5

3

2

Thailand

15

13

2

86.7

1

2

1

2

1

Myanmar

15

13

2

86.7

3

1

Pakistan

12

8

4

66.7

China

11

9

2

81.8

Bangladesh

10

10

0

100.0

3

1

Tajikistan

9

9

0

100.0

1

2

1

1

Kyrgyzstan

8

5

3

62.5

1

3

1

Bhutan

7

5

2

71.4

2

Kazakhstan

6

4

2

66.7

1

2

Mongolia

6

0

6

0.0

2

Australia

5

5

0

100.0

Brunei

5

3

2

60.0

Cambodia

4

4

0

100.0

Lao PDR

4

4

0

100.0

Solomon

3

3

0

100.0

Malaysia

3

3

0

100.0

Korea

3

3

0

100.0

Fiji

3

3

0

100.0

Turkey

4

4

0

100.0

Tonga

2

2

0

100.0

PNG

2

2

0

100.0

Vanuatu

2

2

0

100.0

New Zealand

1

1

0

100.0

Iran

1

1

0

100.0

1

1

Lebanon

1

1

0

100.0

1

1

United Arab Emirates

1

1

0

100.0

Timor-Leste

1

1

0

100.0

1

1

1

100.0

0.0

Uzbekistan

1

1

0

100.0

1

1

1

100.0

0.0

Afghanistan

1

0

1

0.0

1

1

100.0

Total

423

376

47

-

423

213

-

Flood

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

Earthquake

Landslide

Typhoon

Forest fire

Total
Num.

Num.

Num.

Num.

Num.

Num.

Num.

Num.

Num.

Num.

Num.

Num.

Num.

Num.

Num.

4

2

7

3

4

2

4

3

2

3

12

6

4

5

2
1

2

2

3
1

1

(%)

60

22

36.7

14

23.3

4

6.7

4

56

42

75.0

0

0.0

1

1.8

Num.

(%)

2

3.3

13

21.7

2.0

1

3.1

1

3.1

1

3.1

46.2

5

19.2

3

11.5

2

7.7

14

63.6

2

9.1

2

9.1

1

4.5

16

12

75.0

1

6.3

15

4

26.7

2

13.3

1

6.7

1

15

13

86.7

1

6.7

1

15

9

60.0

4

26.7

1

6.7

12

5

41.7

2

16.7

4

33.3

11

2

18.2

5

45.5

3

27.3

10

5

50.0

2

20.0

2

9

4

44.4

2

22.2

2

2

8

3

37.5

1

12.5

2

7

4

57.1

3

42.9

6

3

50.0

2

1

6

2

33.3

1

5

3

60.0

5

4

80.0

4

4

100.0

4

3

75.0

1

1

2

1

2

4

1

2

2

2

1

1
1
1

2

2
2

1

1

2

1

1
1

1

2

1

1

3

1

1

1

1
1

1

1

1

1

1

3

1

33.3

2

1

3

2

66.7

1
1

1

1

1

3

1

3

1

33.3

4

1

25.0

1
1
1

2

1

1

2

1

2

1

1

1

39

25

20

19

25

36

32

31

4

1

1

28

28

34

3.6

5

8.3

1

1.8

7

21.9

3

9.4

2

9.1

1

6.7

1

8.3

22.2

1

11.1

25.0

2

25.0

33.3

1

16.7

3

50.0

1

16.7

1

20.0

1

25.0

1

33.3

1

100.0

1

15.4

4.5
2

6

12.5

40.0

1

1

20.0

1

6.3

1

6.7

1

6.7

6.7

9.1
3

66.7

1

(%)

8.0

30.0

20.0

33.3

50.0

Num.

4

1
2

(%)

4.0

4

8.0

1

33.3

1

33.3

33.3

1

33.3

2

100.0

2

100.0

25.0

50.0

1

50.0

100.0

100.0

1

1

Num.

1

1

1

(%)

others

2

1

2

1

Num.

Oil Spill

2

2

1

43

(%)

1

1

24

Num.

30.0

1

19

(%)

15

3

20

Num.

18.0

1

2

Num.

1.8

2

3

(%)

1

1

1

Num.

16.1

3

2

(%)

9

2

1

Num.

Cyclone

1

54

-

28

-

36

-

18

-

22

-

21

100.0

-

6

-

25

-

JPT member report “Sentinel Asia Activity in 2021”
1

ADRC

-

AHA Centre Executive (ACE) Programme-

The 27th session of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum(APRSAF-27)

2

AFAD

Summary of Floods and Landslides in Turkey on 11 August, 2021 throughSA system activation

3

AHA Center

AHA Centre Disaster Monitoring and Analysis Briefing for Myanmar
Flooding, July 2021

4

CAIAG

Emergency Observation Request

5

Chiba University

EMERGENCY RESPONSE OF THE AUGUST 2021 JAPAN FLOODS6DMCEmergency Observation Request, EOR7EOS

EOR Responses and Publications from EOS as a Data Analysis Node8

GIC/AIT

Activities carried out as Principal Data Analysis Node (P-DAN) for
Sentinel Asia

9

GISTDAGISTDA continue in supporting Disaster Management

10

ISRO

Support to Sentinel Asia

11

JAXA

Support from the Sentinel Asia community in response to the “Heavy rainof August, Reiwa 3”

12

MBRSC

Date support of KHALIFSAT for EOR (2021)

13

MO

Summary of 2021 results through SA system Activation

14

MONRE

Summary of 2021 results through SA system activation

15

NSPO

Satellite Imagery Support to Sentinel Asia

16

PHIVOLCS

EOR

17

RIKEN

Predicting Flood Inundation Depth Based-on Machine Learning andNumerical Simulation

18

Tohoku University

Estimation of flood depth using SAR data and DEM

19

University of Tokyo

R&D on satellite-based building footprint mapping using FORMOSAT-2
satellite images

20

Yamaguchi University

Contribution VAPs for EOR activities

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC)

Title

Participation for international conferences

Type ofInternational Conference

Activity
Date-

1. AHA Centre Executive (ACE) Programme
On 17 November 2021, ADRC participated in an AHA Centre Executive (ACE) Programme, which
was organized by the AHA Centre and Kobe University. This webinar was held in an online format,
and reported on the latest DRR technology transfers among related DRR organizations. ADRC gavea presentation that included the following case studies: (i) Outline of the Sentinel Asia, (ii) Trend of
an Emergency Observation Request, and (iii) How to register disaster information into the OPTEMIS
which is a system for making EOR.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021
2. The 27th session of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF-27)
The 27th Session of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF) was held from 30
November to 3 December 2021 by Online. It was co-organized by the Vietnam Academy of Science andTechnology, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) and theJapan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).
APRSAF was established in 1993 to enhance space activities in the Asia-Pacific region. Attended by
space agencies, governments, and international organizations such as the United Nations as well ascompanies, universities and research institutes, this forum is the largest space-related conference in
the Asia Pacific region. APRSAF has four Working Groups: the (1) Space Applications Working Group(SAWG), (2) Space Technology Working Group (STWG), (3) Space Environment Utilization Working
Group (SEUWG), and (4) Space Education Working Group (SEWG). APRSAF participants share
information about their activities and future plans for their countries and regions in each working
group. APRSAF also supports international projects designed to find solutions to common issues suchas disaster management and environmental protection.
ADRC joined the Space Applications Working Group (SAWG) and reported on trends in Sentinel Asia
emergency observation requests and its future action plans.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

Disaster & Emergency Management Authority in Turkey (AFAD)

Title

Summary of Floods and Landslides in Turkey on 11 August,2021 through SA system activation

Type of

EOR

Activity(e.g., Conference, Workshop, Meeting, Training, EOR, Providing satellite data or VAP)

Date

13/08/2021

Floods and landslides heavily affected Kastamonu, Sinop and Bartın provinces in the Western Black Sea
region on August 11, 2021 and following days. Disaster resulted from excessive precipitation in the region
according to the General Directorate of Meteorology, the amount of precipitation per square meter in some regionsof Kastamonu, Sinop and Bartın between 10-12 August was recorded as 2/3 of the total precipitation in a year (forexample, total precipitation amount in 48 hours in Mamatlar village of Bozkurt was measured as 420.6 kg/m2).
Unfortunately, 82 citizens (71 Kastamonu, 10 Sinop, 1 Bartın) lost their lives due to the floods and debris flows.
Information technologies and Telecommunication Department of AFAD informed national authorities that has
ability to get satellite and aerial imagery / video (e.g. General Directorate of Mapping, Secutity) and first streaming video
data was released on 12th of August and clear weather VHR satellite imagery was shared on 13th of August so most of
mapping efforts related with affected area mapping, damage assessment mapping were performed by the help of thisdata.
AFAD was not a JPT member at this time but submitted an EOR to Sentinel Asia on 13th of August 2021. This
request has been approved by Sentinel Asia and some satellite data / analysis results was shared through Sentinel Asia’s
Optemis Geo-portal between 15 – 28 August 2021. All of this useful data was used to compare and correct the previous
results / mapping efforts. Data was shared with AFAD’s Response Department and all remotely sensed data and analysis
are used for preliminary damage estimation, evaluation of the severity of the disaster and extent of the affected area.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Mapping of the evaluation of the severity of the disaster and extent of the affected area

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

SA provided data was mainly used for compare and correct the previous results / mapping efforts

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

The ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on
disaster management (AHA Centre)

Title

AHA Centre Disaster Monitoring and Analysis Briefing for
Myanmar Flooding, July 2021

Type ofProviding satellite data for disaster emergency situations

Activity(e.g., Conference, Workshop, Meeting, Training, EOR, Providing satellite data or VAP)

Date

27/07– 30/07 2021

The ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on disaster management (AHA Centre) is an intergovernmental organization which aims to facilitate cooperation and coordination among the ASEAN Member States andwith the United Nations and international organizations for disaster management and emergency response in the ASEAN
region. One of the main responsibilities for the AHA Centre is to conduct disaster monitoring and analysis in the ASEAN
Region. When a significant disaster occurs in one or more of the ASEAN Member States, the AHA Centre carries out
emergency response operations. Prior to the emergency response operations, the AHA Centre through the Disaster
Monitoring and Analysis (DMA) unit is required to analyse disasters as well as coordinate with the Emergency Operation
Centre (EOC) of the concerned/affected ASEAN Member State. On 26 July 2021, Myanmar's Department of Disaster
Management (DDM) reported severe localised storms and flooding (AHADID: AHA-ST-2021-000588-MMR). Following
its mandate to facilitate cooperation and coordination, the AHA Centre has made an Emergency Observation Request(EOR) to Sentinel Asia through the OPTEMIS dashboard. The AHA Centre utilised the products (data from Data Provider
Nodes (DPN) and Data Analysis Nodes(DAN)) provided through the Sentinel ASIA EOR to conduct further analysis toestimate the impacts and damages. The AHA Centre then conducted an internal briefing and sent its analyses to the DDM
to support them in responding to the disasters. According to the ASEAN Disaster Information Network (ADINet), thisdisaster has resulted in the loss of 4 (four) lives and affected 30K families (134K persons) in Karen State, Mon State, andRakhine State of Myanmar. Reports of damages include 6.8K houses.

Sentinel ASIA product for the AHA Centre Disaster Monitoring and Analysis, July 2021

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

Central Asian Institute of Applied Geosciences (CAIAG)

Title

Emergency Observation Request

Type of

EOR activity

Activity
Date-

CAIAG is an independent non-profit organization and was founded in 2002 under Cooperative agreement between
the Government of Kyrgyz Republic and the German GeoForschungs Zentrum, Potsdam, Germany. The main
purpose of CAIAG is carrying out the scientific research in the field of Geosciences: Geodynamics andgeocatastrophes; Climate, water and geoecology; Use and protection of resources.
CAIAG submitted following EORs in 2021. CAIAG used the data for in consequence analysis assessmentof influences.

1.

Landslide, Mudflows in Tajikistan on 11 May, 2021

2.

Earthquake in Tajikistan on 7 July, 2021

3.

Flood in Kyrgyzstan on 12 July, 2021

4.

Flood in Uzbekistan on 13 July, 2021

5.

Flood and Mudflow in Kyrgyzstan on 20 July, 2021

VAP for Flood and Mudflow in Kyrgyzstan

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021
Organization

Chiba University, Japan

Title

EMERGENCY RESPONSE OF THE AUGUST 2021 JAPAN FLOODS

Type of

EOR

Activity(e.g., Conference, Workshop, Meeting, Training, EOR, Providing satellite data or VAP)

Date

14/08/2021

A heavy rainfall hit Western Japan from August 11 to 21, 2021. Due to the record-breaking rainfall, inundations
occurred in 68 rivers and caused extensive damages. The International Charter Space and Major Disasters (Charter)and Sentinel Asia was activated for this event on August 14, 2021, in response to a request from the Japanese
Government. Several synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) satellite images were provided through the website. Our groupattended the EOR from August 14. We downloaded several pre- and post-event SAR intensity images to grasp theaffected area. We generated the color composites of temporal SAR images in the Kyushu Region. The expansion ofwater regions had been observed in Takeo and Kurume Cities. For Takeo City, the inundations were extracted by thedifferences in the backscatter intensity of Sentinel-1 images. Flat areas of 3.5 km2 and urban areas of 3.5 km2 were
estimated as flooded at 18:21 August 15, 2021.

Estimation of inundation using pre- and post Sentinel-1 intensity images in Takeo City, Saga Prefecture, JapanSentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

Disaster Management Centre

Title

Emergency Observation Request, EOR

Type of

REQUEST

Activity
Date-

Disaster Management Centre (DMC) is the leading agency for disaster management in Sri Lanka.
It is mandated with the responsibility of implementing and coordinating national and sub-national
level programmes for reducing the risk of disasters with the participation of all relevant
stakeholders.
DMC was established as per the provisions of the Sri Lanka Disaster Management Act No. 13 of2005 as the executing agency of the National Council for Disaster Management (NCDM).

The main activities of the Disaster Management Centre (DMC) are Research and Development,
Mitigation, Planning Preparedness, Dissemination of Early Warning for the vulnerable population,
Emergency Response, Coordination of Relief and Post Disaster Activities in collaboration withother key agencies.

DMC requested EORs in 2021. Thank you for your cooperation.



Oil spill emergency / May 2021



Flood / June 2021



Flood and Landslide / November 2021

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

Earth Observatory Singapore (EOS), Nanyang Technological
University

Title

EOR Responses and Publications from EOS as a Data Analysis
NodeType of

EOR and Publication

Activity
Date

Year of 2021

In 2021, the Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS) established a fully dedicated EOS Remote Sensing (EOSRS) Lab; expanding its current team with more members and funding committed to exploring and developing
algorithms for disaster response and monitoring natural hazards. Our disaster response operations will also be
expanded. From these initiatives, EOS will be able to contribute more to maximize the potential applicationsof satellite-remote sensing data, especially for disasters.
Alongside this re-organization, as a Data Analysis Node (DAN), the EOS-RS team has responded to a total of
6 Emergency Observation Requests (EORs) in 2021 (Figure 1). These responses include floods, typhoons,volcanoes, and earthquakes in the region. Besides publishing our products over OPTEMIS, our products arealso publicized and disseminated rapidly over Twitter (https://twitter.com/eos_rs/) and https://eos-rsproducts.earthobservatory.sg/.
Recent improvements in our workflows to attain speed-ups for damage mapping has also enabled us to create
our improved damage maps in an unprecedented scale. In December 2021 Super Typhoon Odette madelandfall across the Philippines archipelago, causing severe damage over Central and Southern Philippines.
Due to the widespread nature of the event, satellite radar data acquired over 6 orbital tracks by ALOS-2 andSentinel-1 were used, covering an approximate area of 418,700 km2 – creating a total of 2 Flood Proxy Maps
(FPMs) and 6 Damage Proxy Maps (DPMs) (Figure 2). This sets a precedence for the most mapping products
created for the largest areas covered for any event we have responded to thus far. Subsequently, ASEAN
Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on disaster management (AHA Center) have used our FPM
for reference in their Situation Updates, whilst the World Food Programme provided valuable feedback, which
we immediately addressed, and the resulting updated maps were forwarded to their local partners in thePhilippines.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 1: Map of Sentinel-Asia EORs the Earth Observatory of Singapore has responded to in 2021.

Figure 2. (Left) Spatial coverage of DPMs and FPMs by EOS-RS overlayed with the path of Super Typhoon Odette across thePhilippines and (Right) blow-ups of one of the Damage Proxy Maps of the worst-hit areas of Siargao Island and Surigao City.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021
Organization

Geoinformatics Center, Asian Institute of Technology

Title

Activities carried out as Principal Data Analysis Node (P-DAN)
for Sentinel Asia.

Type of

Value-Added Product Generation for Disaster Activations

Activity
Date

24/06/2021 - 28/02/2022

As the Principal Data Analyses Node (P-DAN) of Sentinel Asia, the Geoinformatics Center of the Asian Institute ofTechnology (GIC/AIT) produces Value Added Products (VAP) right after disaster occurrences to support disaster
response activities of the Sentinel Asia Community.
Since June 24th, 2021, GIC-AIT has worked on 24 emergency observation requests until February 28th, 2022, andthirteen countries submitted requests in the Asia Pacific region. Most of the requests were sent by the Philippines (5activations; 20.8%), followed by Vietnam (4 activations; 16.7%). India, Kyrgyzstan, Thailand, and Japan requested
two activations each (33.2%). The rest of the requests (29.3%) were submitted by Tajikistan, Indonesia, Myanmar,
Sri Lanka, Turkey, Uzbekistan, and Tonga, each with one request for activation.
Regarding Project Management (PM) activities, The GIC/AIT had undertaken PM activities for two events, including
a Volcanic eruption in Indonesia (December 4th, 2021) and Flooding in Sri Lanka (December 10th, 2021).

Earthquake2%
Volcanic Eruption
21%

Flood
77%

Earthquake

Flood

Volcanic Eruption

Disaster wise VAP creation by GIC-AIT (2021/06-2022/02)

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021
Disaster authorities in Thailand report dozens of provinces in the country have been affected by flooding after heavy
rain brought by Tropical Storm Dianmu. Thailand’s Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department (DDPM)
reported that flooding had affected 58,977 households across 27 provinces. Some affected areas had already seen
flooding from 16 September brought by the Southwest Monsoon.
GIC-AIT conducted a field survey for this Thailand flood on 8th October 2021. We surveyed over a hundred locations
using this application and developed a dedicated web application to visualize our ground data and the validated
product layers.

Ground photographs collected through the GIC-Disaster Survey application in Thailand

Web application for visualizing ground data collected through GIC-Disaster Survey Application

Drone survey

Ground survey
On 4 December 2021, the Mount Semeru volcano in Lumajang Regency, East Java Province, had its largest eruption

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021
in recent history and produced a hot cloud avalanche with volcanic materials and heavy ashfall. As of 6 December,
the Government has reported 34 people killed, 17 unaccounted for, and 5,205 people directly affected, including
some 3,697 displaced within the regency. The eruption has damaged 2,970 houses and has affected 24 schools and3,888 students. So, GIC-AIT produced Value Added Products (VAPs) from Sentinel-1 data (observed on
7th December 2021) for detecting changes, and GIC-AIT created VAPs using Pleiades data (observed
on 11th December 2021) for damage assessment.

Map detailing the new emergence of a lava flow following the 7 December 2021 collapse
at Semeru Volcano, Indonesia

Damage Assessment in Jawa Timur Province, Indonesia

Organization

Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development
Agency (GISTDA)

Title

GISTDA continue in supporting Disaster Management

Type of
Activity

Provide Satellite data and images

Date

2021

GISTDA supported the disaster management activities by
1. Provide satellite images in total of 596 images consisting of 171 Multispectral images, 422
Panchromatic images and 3 Pan sharpened images as followed;

2. GISTDA requested satellite data for Emergency situation in Thailand as followed;
a. 1st October 2011: Thailand have flood in the Northern and Northeastern regionb. 10th February 2022: Oil unintentionally left in pipeline off Rayong for Thursday’s new
spill

c. 24 February 2022: Flooding in Southern Region of Thailand from Feb, 24-27 2022.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report 2021-NRSC/ISRO

Organization

INDIAN SPACE RESEARCH ORGANISATION (ISRO)

Title

Support to Sentinel Asia

Type of Activity

Providing Satellite data as Data Provider Node (DPN)(e.g., Conference, Workshop, Meeting, Training, EOR, Providing satellite data
or VAP)

Date

31/12/2021

During 2021, ISRO has contributed in the Sentinel Asia activities as Data Provider Node.

ISRO hassuccessfully responded to 20 disaster events spread across 11 countries with the help of 43 Indian
Remote Sensing (IRS) satellite datasets comprising of Resourcesat – 2/2A and Cartosat series.
NRSC/ISRO has attended all meetings organized by Sentinel Asia during this period. On requestfrom Sentinel Asia, a detailed presentation was made on National Database for Emergency
Management

to the Steering Committee Members of Sentinel Asia.
ISRO Support to Sentinel Asis EOR’s during 2021

Fig 1: EOR’s responded during 2021
Towards strengthening capacity building activities of Sentinel Asia, ISRO in association with IWMI
has organised two 2-day webinars on Drought Risk Management and Flood forecasting andModeling during July and October, 2021 respectively for the benefit of Sentinel Asia member
countries as part of Disaster Risk Reduction initiative. About 65 and 110 delegates from Sentinel Asia
Member countries have participated in these two webinars respectively. NRSC/ISRO has taken alead role in organizing these two webinars. The details of webinars is given in the brochures. In

Sentinel Asia Activity Report 2021-NRSC/ISRO

addition, ISRO has represented in various telecom meetings, steering committee meetings and has
also demonstrated the Bhuvan Geo-portal.

Flood forecasting Webinar

Drought Risk Webinar

Towards addressing disasters in India, ISRO has activated sentinel Asia towards support to
Uttarakhand Flash floods, Cyclones ‘TAUKTAE’, ‘YAAS’, ‘NIVAR’, ‘BUREVI’ and for the floods ofAssam an Bihar floods-2021, and as part of it has received data from ALOS PALSAR-2 andTHEOS-1 satellite datasets.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)

Title

Support from the Sentinel Asia community in response to the“Heavy rain of August, Reiwa 3”

Type of

EOR

Activity(e.g., Conference, Workshop, Meeting, Training, EOR, Providing satellite data or VAP)

Date

14/08/2021

While JAXA as DPN member supports almost always EORs from the Sentinel Asia community,
JAXA itself benefits greatly from the Sentinel Asia community as well. After 11 August 2021,
torrential heavy rains hit the southern island of Japan, “Kyushu region” western, and eastern Japan.
13 persons died and 17 persons injured, and 8,209 houses are affected after the heavy rain.
Japan Meteorological Agency issued heavy rain and mudslide warnings for several areas.
On 12 August 2021, upon request from disaster management authorities, “Ministry of Land,
Information, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) and upon subsequent consultation from JAXA, ADRC
made an emergency observation request (EOR) to Sentinel Asia. Following the request, DPN
members – GISTDA, ISRO, JAXA, - conducted emergency observation with their respective
satellites. The satellite data were provided to DAN members via Sentinel Asia’s system, OPTEMIS,
developed by GISTDA. Then, DAN members, such as, Chiba University, NIED, RIKEN, andYamaguchi University generated estimated damage maps from the satellite data. The estimateddamage maps were provided to disaster management authorities.
Also, through ADRC, the EOR has been escalated to the International Disaster Charter, as “Sentinel
Asia Escalation”. In this context as well, an expert from Yamaguchi University supported the callby playing the role of Project Manager to coordinate space agencies regarding emergency
observation plan and generate estimated damage maps.
On behalf of the Japanese people, we would like to take this opportunity to extend our sincere
gratitude to all Sentinel Asia members who have supported us.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Preliminary flood extent mapping in East Japan after the heavy rain in Japan in August 2021 provided by RIKEN

Possible inundation in Takeo City, Saga Prefecture, Japan provided by Chiba University and NIED

Detected Water Area using TerraSAR-X in Ohmachi, Saga, Japan provided by Yamaguchi University

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC)

Title

Date support of KHALIFSAT for EOR (2021)

Type of

Sharing satellite images and Value-Added Products for EOR

Activity
Date

2021

The Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) is a Dubai government organization working on the UAE National
Space Programme, which includes various earth observation satellite projects, the UAE Astronaut Programme, theEmirates Mars Mission, and the Emirates Lunar Rover. MBRSC launched its third earth observation satellite, named“KHALIFSAT”, in October 2018. KHALIFSAT is one of the world’s most technologically advanced remote sensing
observation satellites with a resolution of 0.7 Meter, and is the first 100% designed and manufactured satellite in the
United Arab Emirates (UAE). MBRSC has supported Sentinel Asia with satellite images and VAPs for the following
EORs in 2021.

MBRSC shared VAPs as follows:

Flood and Landslide (Sri Lanka), November 2021



Volcanic eruption (Philippines), November 2021



Volcanic eruption (Indonesia), December 2021



Tropical Storm Odette (Philippines), December 2021

VAP [Flood and Landslide (Sri Lanka)]Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

VAP [Volcanic eruption (Indonesia)]

VAP [Tropical Storm Odette (Philippines)]

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021
Organization

Manila Observatory – Geomatics for Environment andDevelopment laboratory

Title

Summary of 2021 results through SA system Activation

Type ofEOR for Extreme Weather Bulletins (EWBs)

Activity
Date

21/02/2021
02/06/2021
25/07/2021
08/09/2021
12/10/2021
14/12/2021

Introduction
21/02/2021
Severalareas

experienced

inSouthern

accumulated

Philippines

24-hour

rainfallexceeding 150 mm during the onslaught ofTropical Depression Dujuan (Auring). It entered
the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) on
February 17, 2021 as a tropical storm. It
remained as a tropical depression (TD) andweakened as it traversed the Dinagat Island. On
February 22, 2021 it made landfall over Batag
Island,Northern

Samar(Figure1)

anddowngraded to a low pressure area.

Figure 1. Tropical depression Auring track over the Philippines

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Multi-temporal Synthetic Aperture Radar images (SAR) specifically ALOS-2 PALSAR-2 pre-disaster scene
observed on April 11, 2019 and post-disaster scene observed on February 25, 2021, provided by JAXA throughSentinel Asia, were utilized to detect flood in the Municipalities of San Miguel, Tago, and the City of Tandag in
the province of Surigao del Sur (Figure 2). The map generated map shows affected land cover (Figure 3) by TD

Auring.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 3. Affected Land Cover in San Miguel, Tago and Tandag City, Surigao del Sur

02/06/2021
Tropical storm Choi-wan (Dante) made several landfalls in the islands of Visayas to south west Luzon on June
1 to 3, 2021. To estimate the impact of Choi-wan, the NARL provides a post disaster multispectral scene
specifically FORMOSAT-5 observed on June 4, 2021. The data was used to detect flood in the Province ofOriental Mindoro particularly in the City of Calapan and Municipality of Nuajan (Figure 4). The detected flood
was overlaid with exposure elements such as lifeline utilities (Figure 5), critical infrastructure (Figure 6), andbuilt-up areas (Figure 7).

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 4. Detected flood in Oriental Mindoro province extracted from FORMOSAT-5 observed on June 4, 2021

Figure 5. Exposed lifeline utilities in Oriental Mindoro

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 6. Exposed critical infrastructure in Oriental Mindoro

Figure 7. Exposed population in Oriental Mindoro

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

25/07/2021
The northern and southern Luzon regions in Philippines experienced accumulated 24-hour rainfall exceeding
250 mm during the onslaught of Typhoon ‘Fabian’ on July 24-25, 2021. To assess the impact of Typhoon Fabian,
JAXA provided ALOS-2 PALSAR-2 scenes, one pre-disaster image observed on September 1, 2020 and anotheron May 25, 2021 as well as post-disaster image observed on August 3, 2021. These multi-temporal RADAR
imageries were applied to detect inundation in the provinces of Laguna (Figure 8) and Oriental Mindoro (Figure9). Maps showing affected population (Figure 10), lifeline utilities (Figure 11), critical infrastructures (Figure12), and land cover (Figure 13) were also generated.

Figure 8. Detected Flood in Laguna extracted from ALOS-2 PALSAR-2 satellite imageries.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 9. Detected Flood in Oriental Mindoro extracted from ALOS-2 PALSAR-2 satellite imageries.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 12. Exposed population to detected flood.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 11. Exposed lifeline utilities to detected flood.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 12. Exposed critical infrastructure to detected flood.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 13. Exposed land cover to detected flood.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

08/09/2021
On September 6 to 7, 2021 the tropical storm with international name ‘Conson’ and local name ‘Jolina’ passed
by several areas in central Luzon, Philippines. The storm poured greater than 150 mm accumulated 24-hour of
rainfall. Sentinel Asia provided before and after disaster satellite imageries to evaluate the effects of tropicalstorm. Pre- and post-disaster RADAR imageries specifically ALOS-2 PALSAR-2 observed on June 8, 2021 and
September 14, 2021 from JAXA together with THEOS-1 image observed on September 9, 2021 were processed
to identify flooded areas. Flood was detected in provinces of Laguna, Tarlac, and Pampanga (Figure 14). To
evaluate the impact of tropical storm Jolina, the detected flood was overlaid with exposures such as lifelines
utilities (Figure 15), critical infrastructure (Figure 16), population (Figure 17), and land cover (Figure 18).

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 14. Detected flood in Laguna (top), Tarlac (middle), and Pampanga (bottom).

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 15. Exposed lifeline utilities to flood caused by tropical storm Jolina.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 16. Exposed critical infrastructure to flood caused by tropical storm Jolina.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 17. Exposed population to flood caused by tropical storm Jolina.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 18. Exposed land cover to flood caused by tropical storm Jolina.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

12/10/2021
Tropical depression Maring brought moderate to heavy rain in northern Luzon specifically Batanes, Cagayan
Valley, Cordillera Administrative Region, and Ilocos Region on October 11 to 12, 2021. According to thePhilippines Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Office report as of October 28, 2021 there
were 290,802 families or 1,134,980 persons in northern Luzon affected by Maring. To estimate the impact of
typhoon Maring the Manila Observatory requested emergency observation in Sentinel Asia. We received preand post disaster scenes such as THEOS-1 from GISTDA, ResourceSat-2 from ISRO, and ALOS-2 PALSAR-2
products from JAXA.
14/12/2021
Tropical storm Odette (Rai) entered the Philippine Area of responsibility or PAR on December 14, 2021. It
intensified into a typhoon on December 15, 2021 and continued to move westward. It made landfall on
December 16, 2021 over Siargao Island, Surigao del Norte. Rai slightly weakened when it reached central
Visayas towards Palawan and exited in the Kalayaan Group of Island on December 18, 2021. The typhoon
brought an amount of more than 150 mm of accumulated 24-hour rainfall. To estimate the consequences ofrainfall, observed flood from the ALOS-2 PALSAR-2 product processed by Earth Emergency Observatory ofSingapore – Remote Sensing (EOS-RS) was mapped (Figure 19). Exposed elements such as critical infrastructure(Figure 20), affected population (Figure 21), and land cover (Figure 22) were overlaid to observed flood.

Figure 19. Detected flood in Leyte Island extracted from ALOS-2 PALSAR-2 product of JAXA observed on December 16, 2022

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 20. Exposed critical infrastructures to detected flood in Leyte Island

Figure 21. Exposed population to detected flood in Leyte Island

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Figure 22. Exposed land cover to detected flood in Leyte Island

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

Department of national remote sensing – VietNam Ministry ofnatural resources and environment

Title

Summary of 2021 results through SA system activation

Type of

EOR

Activity(e.g., Conference, Workshop, Meeting, Training, EOR, Providing satellite data or VAP)

Date

13/09/2021: EOR
07/10/2021: EOR
10/10/2021: EOR
25/10/2021: EOR

Through four activation sessions we have received timely support for satellite observation data as
well as other value-added products. With the processing of satellite data and other supporting
documents, we have provided 22 floods map for agencies to use data to respond to natural disasters
in Vietnam. Details of the duties are listed below.
13/09/2021:
According to the forecast of the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, it is likely that on
the night of September 8, tropical Storm ConSon will enter the East Sea, becoming the storm No. 5,
likely to be the strongest when reaching the Hoang Sa archipelago; forecast can reach level 11, jerk level
13. Receive forecast information on the impact of tropical Storm ConSon which will cause heavy rain
and flooding in central provinces. We immediately activated the system to request the support of
Sentinel Asia, Through timely support from data providers and application organizations, we havereceived the following satellite image materials and value-added products:+ 06 ALOS-2 after-disaster scenes (03 scenes in level 1.1, 03 scenes in level 2.1)
+ 04 detected flood water map of AOI and 01 detected Flood Water in Vietnam in SHP file format fromAIT
+ 04 FORMOSAT-5 Level4 after-disaster scenes
07/10/2021:
Due to the influence of the tropical convergence band combined with a tropical depression that is
likely to strengthen into a hurricane, from now Oct 06 – 08, 2021 in the area from Quang Binh to
Phu Yen and the North - Central Highlands will have heavy rain with total rainfall in the area from
Quang Binh to Quang Ngai, Kon Tum is common 300-500mm, especially in the area from Thua
Thien Hue to Quang Ngai, there are places with very heavy rain with rainfall above 600mm. The
area from Binh Dinh to Phu Yen, Gia Lai is popular from 100-300mm, there are places over 350mm.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021
From October 9-12, heavy rain expands to the North Central provinces and the Northern Delta. We
have activated the system and received the following valuable support:+ 01 ALOS-2 pre-disaster scenes and 01 ALOS-2 after-disaster scenes from JAXA
+ 08 THEOS1 after-disaster scenes from GISTDA+ 01 detected flood water map in Thu thien- Hue province of Vietnam and Detected Flood Water in
Vietnam in SHP file format from AIT

10/10/2021:
According to the forecast, KOMPASU storm will make landfall in Vietnam, directly affecting theprovinces from Thanh Hóa to Quang Nam. We have activated the system and received the following
valuable support::+ 03 THEOS1 after-disaster scenes from GISTDA+ 01 RESOURCESAT-2 after-disaster scenes from ISRO
+ 02 FORMOSAT-5 after-disaster scenes from NARL

25/10/2021:
From October 22, the area from Thua Thien Hue to Binh Dinh provice has very heavy rain with thetotal amount of rain over 700mm.There is a high risk of flash floods and landslides, flooding in
low-lying mountainous provinces in the North and North Central regions. we have activated thesystem and received the following valuable support:+ 04 ALOS-2 pre-disaster scenes and 04 ALOS-2 after-disaster scenes from JAXA
+ 01 RESOURCESAT-2 after-disaster scenes from ISRO
+ 01 detected flood water map in Quang Nam province, Vietnam and Detected Flood Water in Vietnam in
SHP file format from AIT+ 06 THEOS1 after-disaster scenes from GISTDA

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021
Figure 1.

Quick monitoring map of flooding in Hoi An city, Quang Nam province on September 15,

2021 (inundated area information is extracted from satellite image ALOS PALSAR 2).

Figure 2. The value-added products are deteced water in Hoi An city made by AIT and shared on the
portal of SA (September 15, 2021).

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization
Title
Type of Activity
Date

National Space Organization, National Applied Research Laboratories(NSPO-NARLabs)
Satellite Imagery Support to Sentinel Asia
Responses to EOR (Providing Satellite Data as Data Provider Node)Year of 2021

During 2021, NSPO has contributed to the Sentinel Asia activities as Data Provider Node. NSPO has
successfully responded to Emergency Observation Requests (EOR’s) pertaining to12 countries
ranging from East Asia to South Asia in 21 events with FORMOSAT-5 satellite datasets comprising of
pre- and post-disaster events. All these satellite image products were provided right after we acquired
cloudless images. According to the statistics, FORMOSAT-5 satellite image products supported
various types of applications such as storm and flood relief. At the same time, it has also given disaster
response assistance to India, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam for more than one event. It’s
worth noting that NSPO also provided Value-Added Products to assist stakeholders in the rescue,
which enabled decision makers to understand the extent and scope of the disaster in intuitive manner.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Fig 1 NSPO Support to Sentinel Asia Emergency Observation Requests During 2021.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization
Title

Sentinel Asia JPT-3 Cloud Services

Type of Activity
Date

Academia Sinica Grid Computing Center (ASGC) and NSPO-NARLabs
Cloud Server Service
Year of 2021

Academia Sinica Grid Computing Center (ASGC) and NSPO, in collaboration with Sentinel Asia
Tech Team, supported Sentinel Asia Emergency Observation (EO) online workflow and the integrationof WebGIS, EO pipeline, data access of DAN and DPN, as well as distributed cloud platform sinceFeb. 2020. Reliability of the JPT-3 cloud services is higher than 99.9% on average in year 2021. Around
173GB data is downloaded by about 393 accesses from Sentinel Asia members and applications on amonthly average from Feb. 2020 to Dec. 2021. The total download data scale has been more than 1.9
Terabyte (TB) during 2021. NSPO together with Sentinel Asia Tech Team reviewed the status of SA
services and technical issues periodically. In the future, NSPO will work with the SA technical teamto advance the values of satellite resources on disaster management and their applications by designingand prototyping spatiotemporal infrastructures such as Open Data Cube, token-based authentication
and authorization infrastructure.

Fig 2 Summary of Sentinel Asia JPT-3 Cloud Services in 2020 to 2021.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

APRSAF-27 Side Event: Building Resilience Using Open Data Cube
(ODC) in Post-COVID Era

Title
Type of Activity
Date

NSPO-NARLabs and JAXA

Workshop and Conference meeting2021-11-29

NSPO-NARLabs and JAXA co-hosted Side Event on “Building Resilience Using Open Data Cube
(ODC) in Post-COVID Era” in APRSAF-27. The objective of this Side Event is to share various
countries/regions development status, and to exchange experiences in applying Open Data Cube
(ODC) to different societal benefit areas. Invited speakers are from Australia, Japan, Taiwan, Thailand,
the US, Vietnam, and international organizations: Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS)
and Asian Development Bank (ADB). In this event, Australia, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam shared
their experiences on the national level development as well as applications to SDG of Data Cube.
International Organizations of CEOS and ADB presented the development of Open Data Cube andrecent Remote Sensing projects from a global point of view.
There are approximately 40 participants from Taiwan, Japan, Australia, Thailand, Vietnam,and U.S. This event concluded with a concept to establish a regional Data Cube as an infrastructure to
support building a resilient society in post-Covid era. This concept facilitates a starting point for the
APRSAF community, especially Sentinel Asia and SAFE within SAWG, to consider the feasibility ofa joint effort. Therefore, this event facilitates as the first step in establishing ODC for future APRSAF
initiatives. In this cooperation platform, we could work together towards contributions in SDGs.

Fig 3. Group Photo of APRSAF Side Event:
Building Resilience Using Open Data Cube (ODC) in Post-COVID Era

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

C The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology(PHIVOLCS)

Title

EOR

Type of

EOR

Activity
Date

November/2021

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) is a service institute of the Department of
Science and Technology (DOST) that is principally mandated to mitigate disasters that may arise from volcanic
eruptions, earthquakes, tsunami and other related geotectonic phenomena.
Our vision is;
A leading global science and technology institution of empowered men and women helping develop communities
safe from and resilient to volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis and other related hazards
And our mission is;
We provide timely, quality and socially-inclusive information and services for warning, disaster preparedness andmitigation. This we do through the development and application of technologies for the monitoring and accurate
prediction of, and determination of areas prone to, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis and other related hazards,
and gender-responsive capacity enhancement for comprehensive disaster risk reduction.
In the framework of Sentinel Asia, PHIVOLCS requested for volcanic eruption influence in Philippines which hit
was in November 2021. Provided VAP were utilized for our DRR activities.

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021
Organization

Geoinformatics Unit, RIKEN Center for Advanced Intelligence
Project (AIP)

Title

Predicting Flood Inundation Depth Based-on Machine Learning
and Numerical Simulation

Type ofConference

Activity(e.g., Conference, Workshop, Meeting, Training, EOR, Providing satellite data or VAP)

Date

21/10/2022

Recent advances in earth observation and machine learning have enabled rapid estimation of flooded areas following
catastrophic events such as torrential rains and riverbank overflows. However, estimating the actual inundation depth
remains a challenge since it often requires detailed numerical simulation. This paper presents a methodology forpredicting the inundation from remote sensing derived information by coupling deep learning and numericalsimulation. We generate a large dataset of flood depth inundations considering several heavy rain conditions in four
independent target areas. We propose a CNN-based regression framework. Our experiment demonstrates that our
methodology can predict inundation depth on a separate target area not included during training, demonstrating great
generalization ability.

Proceedings of the 2nd CDCEO Workshop, IJCAI-ECAI, 2022

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

International Research Institute of Disaster Science, Tohoku
University

Title

Estimation of flood depth using SAR data and DEM

Type of

Research

Activity
Date

31/08/2022

Rapid information about the affected area and understanding impacts are critical for early response and recovery
from disasters. For example, remote sensing data analysis has been applied to identifying the extent of flood. In
fact, remote sensing data has become the only tool that can identify the extent of a major flood within hours or days
after its occurrence. Here, we attempt to determine inundation depth from remote sensing data. Inundation depth isuseful for identifying areas in need of assistance during evacuations, road disruption, and damage. To achieve this,
we propose practical application of sparse representation integrating SAR-based flood binary maps and digital
elevation models to estimate inundation depth. We assume that floods can be modeled as a combination of water
bodies at rest. A dictionary of water bodies computed under the potential flood level is constructed from the digital
elevation models. The actual flood extent is then represented as a sparse linear combination of the water body
dictionaries. Each water body in the linear combination related to the inundation level is used to estimate theinundation depth. To evaluate the proposed procedure, we estimated the inundation depths for the flood event of2008 in Okayama Prefecture, Japan. The results showed remarkable agreement with field survey results.

Estimated inundation depths for the flood event of 2008 in Okayama Prefecture, JapanSentinel Asia Activity Report in 2020

Organization

The University of Tokyo

Title

R&D on satellite-based building footprint mapping using
FORMOSAT-2 satellite images

Type of

Research and development for data preparedness

Activity(e.g., Conference, Workshop, Meeting, Training, EOR, Providing satellite data or VAP)

Date

Through the year in 2021

The University of Tokyo proceeded on research and development of building footprint mapping from satellite images,
aiming capacity development of participating organizations. We performed pilots with use of FORMOSAT-2 satellite
image data for Tainan and Bangkok provided by NSPO. We processed model training for semantic segmentation by Unetwith training dataset collected through visual interpretation of Google Maps’ high-resolution satellite images1. The modeltraining performed well for Tainan although training dataset did not cover the areas. We trained a model for Bangkok andtested it on FORMOSAT-2 observation data for 2005, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2015. The testing results showed
impact of color contrast differences to accuracy. For the future works, we will compile the developed codes into
workshop materials for capacity development programs.

Figure 1. Examples of building footprint identified by the trained model for Tainan

https://ieee-dataport.org/open-access/dataset-detecting-buildings-containers-and-cranes-satelliteimages
1

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2020

Figure 2. Examples of building footprint identified by the trained model for Bangkok. Left: 2012; right: 2015

Sentinel Asia Activity Report in 2021

Organization

Center for Research and Application for Satellite Remote
Sensing, Yamaguchi University

Title

Contribution VAPs for EOR activities

Type of

EOR activity (Volcanic eruption in Indonesia)

Activity
Date

December 2021

Yamaguchi University, Center for Research and Application of Satellite Remote Sensing, was established in
February 2017. There are 4 missions at this center; (1) to promote world-class research in satellite remotesensing, (2) to cultivate human resources capable of promoting a wide range of research in satellite remotesensing and space technology, (3) to contribute to disaster information analysis and improve public safety andsecurity, and (4) to promote local industry and create new industry/business for space utilization technology.
Yamaguchi university provided VAPs for the event of Volcanic eruption which occurred in December 2021.

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