The International Charter on Space and Major Disasters' Website: when Time is Critical

Paris, January 17, 2002 - As part of the efforts dispatched to assist rescue teams dealing with the most severe disasters, space agency members of the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters have launched today an innovative Website at the Charter Evaluation Workshop in Paris. 

The address of the Website is: www.disasterscharter.org

"This Website is an important step forward in the way we provide rescue and civil defence authorities with the information they need to help teams on the ground when time is critical," said Jean-Luc Bessis on behalf of the International Charter's Executive Secretariat. This website will enable all satellite planners to accelerate the immediate tasking of space-based resources including CNES' SPOT, ESA's ERS, Canada's RADARSAT-1 and soon from Indian and US satellites to acquire new images to assist humanity.

This means that requestors based in areas where major disasters strike will be better prepared when sending their request to the on duty operator via authorized users. The International Charter on Space and Major Disasters' Website provides guidelines concerning the procedures for the request and delivery of data. 

All information pertaining to rescue and civil defence bodies will be available at the click of a mouse including updates in procedures, disasters covered and pertinent links to non-governmental organizations, civil protection agencies, international organizations involved in disaster mitigation and humanitarian assistance, and individual partner agencies.

The International Charter on Space and Major Disasters is the expression of a collective resolve to put space technology at the service of rescue authorities in the event of a major disaster. Its current members are the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), the European Space Agency (ESA), the French space agency (CNES), the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). 

This Charter was set up in the framework of the UNISPACE III conference of the United Nations in 1999 and has been in force since November 1, 2000. Among its most significant operations, assistance was provided to rescue organisations following a series of earthquakes in El Salvador in January and February 2001. 

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