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Mr. Peter N. Churchill
Chair, WGISS,
European Commission DG-JRC
The 9th Meeting of the Working Group on Information Systems and Services was held on the 6th - 8th October 1999 in Nairobi, kindly hosted by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
Prior to the meeting UNEP organised a Workshop entitled "Is there Earth observation outside the OECD". This enabled WGISS participants to discuss issues related to information systems and services with people working in Africa and India who use spatial information, including Earth observation data on a regular basis. A very free and lively exchange took place, raising a range of issues. Out of the discussion a number of concrete actions emerged for WGISS, including help in data rescue and input into on-going projects related to urban monitoring, bathymetric mapping and biomass burning.
The WGISS meeting itself concentrated on a number of key issues. The
first dealt with WGISS's desire to form a closer link with relevant standards
organisations. David Giaretta, Chair of CCSDS Panel 2, attended the meeting
and provided WGISS with his view of areas of potential collaboration. The
resulting discussion identified a clear interest by both parties to cooperate,
with a number of areas of cooperation identified. These ranged from
requirements gathering, to architectural design, to prototyping and
to the final adoption of the resultant standards by CEOS members and associates.
This
discussion will be developed further by WGISS at future meetings.
The status of the various developments related to the interoperability of catalogues was also discussed. It was identified that catalogue interoperability had now progressed within (but not limited to) the Earth observation world to a level where it was now becoming a reality. Three interoperability "worlds" were identified; that based on the CEOS development, the Catalogue Interoperability Protocol (CIP), that based on the NASA developed protocol IMS, and that based on a protocol addressing the wider geographic information world, GEO. With the further development of CIP all three interoperability "worlds" will be themselves interoperable. CEOS Members and Associates had begun to actively implement one of the three solutions within their catalogue systems, although it was recognised that still more effort was needed here.
A great deal of consideration was also given to the potential merging of CEOS and the USA / Japan initiative the Global Observation Information Network (GOIN). GOIN's objective is to exchange global environmental data via information networks within and between the USA and Japan. WGISS has been given the task by the CEOS chairman of evaluating if and how this can be achieved. The final conclusions of WGISS, prompted by a special Task Team on the subject led by Takashi Moriyama of NASDA, former chairman of WGISS, will be reported to CEOS Plenary in the autumn of 2000.
Finally, WGISS began a process to take stock of itself, the good technical work it has achieved, and to assess which key issues confronted it over the next period of time and that should be addressed. At WGISS 9 a number of issues were discussed and agreed. Four key issues were identified against which WGISS needs to take action.
The first addressed the geo-information field, which is one of the fastest growing sectors in information technology, and one that should embrace data from Earth observation satellites. Within the geo-information range of activities, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and associated data and information systems are likely to have major direct impact on future WGISS planning.
The second issue noted that in a rapidly developing technical world, including in the wider geo-information world, the use of standards is becoming increasingly important. WGISS is seeking to work in closer collaboration with relevant standards organisations to begin to achieve this.
Thirdly it was recognised that commercial entities are becoming increasingly important in Earth observation, both in the operation of earth observation missions and in the definition, design, building and operating of data and information systems. WGISS will seek to work in close cooperation with these commercial entities to ensure coherence of approach.
Finally, it was agreed that WGISS has achieved a series of technical
milestones in developing and recommending tools, techniques and standards
in data
and information management, however, there is a need to improve the
uptake by CEOS Members and Associates.
European Commission, Directorate General Joint Research Centre, Space
Applications Institute, I-20120 Ispra (VA), Italy E-mail: peter.churchill@jrc.it