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G E O W O R L D / S E P T E M B E R 2 O O 9 6 Satellites Launched, Imagery Available The UK-DMC2 and Deimos-1 satellites were launched on July 29, 2009, from Kazakhstan by Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (SSTL). The satel-lites were launched onboard a Dnepr rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome and have expanded the capability of the spaced-based Disaster Monitoring Constellation (DMC). UK-DMC2 offers enhancements over its prede-cessor, UK-DMC, which was launched in 2003 and continues to contribute imagery beyond its five-year design life. The first full-resolution commercial-grade image was acquired and processed one week after the launch of the UK-DMC2 satellite. The DMC provides Earth-observation imagery for a range of commercial and environmental applica-tions as well as to the International Charter: Space and Major Disasters. The first satellite in the DMC, AlSAT-1, was launched in 2002. There now are six operational DMC satellites. After a major disaster, the first thing you need to do is supply relief workers with an up-to-date map, explained Philip Davies, SSTL expert. If there's been a big flood, there will be landslides, roads will have been washed away, and bridges will be down. So you need a new map that shows you how to get around the area; and satellite imagery helps you do that. Over the coming weeks, the imaging systems onboard UK-DMC2 and Deimos-1 will be fully tested and characterized to validate their capabilities. The new data already are in demand for deforestation monitoring and precision-agriculture campaigns and are expected to begin contributing to these commercial campaigns and disaster-relief operations as soon as the imaging systems are fully commissioned. The owners of UK-DMC2 and Deimos-1 also have agreed to donate a portion of their imagery to international environmental research chosen by a panel of leading scientists. GIS Students Receive SkillsUSA Championships Awards Winning students in the geospatial technology com-petition, part of the National SkillsUSA Championships held in Kansas City, Mo., were awarded prize pack-ages that included ESRI's ArcGIS software. SkillsUSA was founded in 1965 as the Vocational Industrial Clubs of America with a mandate to provide formal leadership and training for high-school stu-dents preparing for employment after graduation. It now includes college students in some sections. The program's goal is to increase technical and vocational skills among young people to enhance their employ-ment opportunities. Timothy Hales from Central Piedmont Community College in North Carolina was the gold medalist in the geospatial technology competition and received an ArcGIS software package that included ArcView and four extensions as well as a cash prize. Silver and bronze medalists Denver Dobbins and Rachel Harris, respectively, both from Central New Mexico Community College, also won ArcGIS software and cash awards. All contestants submitted written proposals for a campus-garden site-suitability study based on the pro-gram developed by Digital Quest Inc., which creates GIS training courses and awards certifications recog-nized by the U.S. Department of Labor. Solutions were developed using ArcGIS, and project findings were pre-sented in written and oral reports. Contestants also were required to take a written examination. Eddie Hanebuth, president of Digital Quest, helped convince SkillsUSA directors to include GIS. This contest is designed to be very difficult, noted Hanebuth. The winner will have proven that they understand and can implement a full range of NEWS LINK The first images from UK-DMC2 show the states of Texas and Oklahoma. The artificial red color indicates green vegetation and is generated by spectra invisible to the human eye. IMA GES A CQUIRED BY DMCII, COPYRIGHT UK-DMC2/SSTL 2009