Ajit Karn
Turkey and syria earthquake : Bill Nelson, administrator of the US space agency, stated that teams of experts are working diligently to provide rescue workers with valuable information from the Earth-observing fleet. NASA is employing its synthetic aperture radar (SAR), which can monitor the planet in all weather conditions, day or night.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is providing aerial images and data to aid earthquake-ravaged Turkey and Syria in their rescue efforts.
Administrator of the US space agency, Bill Nelson, stated that the teams of experts are working diligently to provide rescue workers with valuable information from the Earth-observing fleet. NASA is employing its synthetic aperture radar (SAR), which can monitor the planet in all weather conditions, day or night. According to the agency’s website, it is used to measure how the ground moves and the built landscape changes after an earthquake.
.@NASA is assisting @StateDept, @USAID, @USGS & first responders in the wake of the earthquake in Türkiye and Syria.
Our disaster response team uses @NASAEarth satellites to help determine areas in need of assistance and to assess additional risks. https://t.co/FAIs90kr4Z
— Bill Nelson (@SenBillNelson) February 8, 2023
A team of scientists from the Earth Observatory of Singapore and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory gathered images before and after the earthquake and created a “proxy damage map” for Turkey.
These proxy maps compare the pre- and post-earthquake radar images to determine how the landscape changed as a result of the tragic event. The US State Department, the California Seismic Safety Commission, the World Bank, and Miyamoto Global Disaster Relief have access to these proxy maps via Earth Science Applied Sciences, national and international collaborations, and the World Bank.
In addition to providing observations and maps through the Disaster Mapping Portal, NASA personnel participate in US Agency for International Development coordination calls.
Lori Schulz, the disaster coordinator for the Turkey-Syria earthquake at NASA, stated that the agency does not know who uses the information it disseminates, but has heard that the World Central Kitchen has used the information to provide food to the displaced. Using space and ground-based observations, NASA scientists are enhancing their ability to decode the events resulting from the natural disaster.
The scientists utilise data from the Commercial SmallSat Data Acquisition programme, which utilises data from commercial satellites to assist NASA in achieving its research objectives. They are able to identify areas with elevated landslide risks.
According to NASA, the scientists intend to add a new tool to evaluate the earthquake’s aftermath. The Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation (EMIT), which will be launched to the International Space Station in 2022, can assess methane emissions as part of observations of the composition of the Earth’s atmosphere.
Its observation times are determined by the orbit of the ISS. Nonetheless, while passing over the earthquake sites, the measurements of new emissions may indicate events that are not easily detected from space.
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Shanna McClain, manager of the NASA Disaster Program, stated that the agency’s relief efforts include tracking disasters such as natural hazard-triggered technological disasters such as damaged infrastructure and pipeline bursts, which the agency wants to identify quickly in order to save the lives of nearby people. According to the report on the website, the EMIT’s ability to assist with such efforts is being evaluated.
