Ghana to make space

*
Ghana to
make space
debut
BY NANA AMA BROWNE KLUTSE (Ph.D)
Science and technology are the pivots
of every nation's development
and an
with an Advanced Fire Information
System, which is a satellite-based
fire
information tool that provides near real-
essential tool for rapid growth and
its role cannot be over-ernphasised.
It is an incontrovertible
fact that no
nation can develop without
science
and technology. The developed nations
boast of several scientific inventions
that have earned them the title of
'World
Power'.
Although
only
a
middle-income
country,
Ghana's foray
into the space industry has begun.
Since its establishment
in 2011,
the
founders
and
some
external
collaborators
have worked
hard to
upgrade the Ghana Space Science and
Technology
Institute
(GSSTI).
The
GSSTI is mandated to coordinate and
develop space science and technology
in the country. Barely a year after the
upgrade concluded
in 2013, it has
ambitiously set a roadmap to launch
an earth observation satellite into space
by 2020. This satellite, when in space,
will orbit within the near-equatorial
region at a low inclination
to allow four
observations per day over Ghana and its
neighbouring countries.
The proposed GHANASAT-l
(Source: MANSAT Gulf group)
Why satellite observation?
Satellite
observations
can assist in
the search for natural resources like
minerals and oil deposits, which will
provide
additional
revenue for the
government. It can also assist in locating
groundwater, which can solve the water
scarcity problem in the country that is
worsening yearly. The newly discovered
aquifer in Kenya's arid Turkana region
through
satellite observation
reveals
that the area contains enough water to
meet the nation's needs for the next 70
years.
Ghana
can
embrace
such
technology. Wildfires can be monitored
time fire information
for appropriate
action. This system is widely used in
South Africa. It provides fire managers
with a unique tool to better manage
the risk of wildfires close to high value
infrastructure and property. The system
can generate alerts directly to the cell
phones of subscribers,
thus allowing
rapid
response
times
in
order
to
minimise the damaging effects of fires.
It can also be used for such mundane
activities as traffic update broadcasts by
radio.
However,
the
most
exciting
opportunity
and the one with the
most economic relevance is application
within the mining sector. The raging
problem of illegal mining activities in
Ghana has
worry. This
farmland,
weakening
become a source of serious
practice is destroying arable
polluting
water
bodies,
the ground
unnecessarily
and causing
ground
falls, not to
mention
millions lost in revenue to
the government.
This problem affects
many regions of the country,
including
0.,
28
GHANA BUSINESS & FINANCE
JANUARY
2015
po
by Earth observation satellites. GRS will
have some key socioeconomic benefits
in terms of cost, strategy, operations
and commercial applications.
GRS will place the country in a
leadership position in geo-information
and remote sensing in West Africa,
The applicative benefits are enormous.
They include provision of an accurate
national mapping
and cadastral
database, control of urban planning
and development, contribution to
an efficient population and housing
census, the taking of forest inventory
and management of their sustainability.
The other uses are the establishment of
a coherent land cover and/or land use
programme, monitoring of maritime
activities over the Ghanaian Exclusive
Economic Zone (EEZ), monitoring
of offshore oil assets, improvement
of security capacities for the country
and fostering the development of new
national applications.
Looking at the earth from space
will help give a better view of the
various issues and problems concerning
the environment and natural resources
Ashanti, Western, Eastern, Central and
Northern regions.
Human monitoring and search for
illegal miners is expensive and has not
been effective over the past few years.
The use of GRS satellite observation
will be useful and most appropriate to
monitor the geographical areas where
illegal mining is taking place and
identify new areas where the galamsey
practitioners may be moving. Law
enforcement agencies can be informed
to move in and stop the illegalactivities.
This will save the environment,
water bodies and reserve revenue for
the government. If successful, such
activities can be used to tackle other
worrying practices including illegal
logging and cocoa smuggling. All such
activities can be monitored by satellite
and appropriate responses can be taken.
for redress.The prospect of seeing ahead
and better means seeing the challenges
and opportunities for appropriate
measures to be taken. _
Ground Receiving Station
An important step towards complete
satellite application in Ghana is the
acquisition of a Ground Receiving
Station (GRS). GRS is used to receive
(in near real time), process and extract
information from the images collected
JANUARY 2015
Theplannedgroundreceivingstationfor
Ghana (Source:MANSATGulfgroup)
The author is the
Research Scientist
and Manager,
Remote Sensing,
GIS & Climate
Centre, Ghana
Space Science and
Technology Institute, Ghana Atomic
Energy Commission, Kwabenya,
Accra; +23324498363;
email: amabrowne@gmaiLcom
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& FINANCE
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