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Draft:Satellite imaging for maritime surveillance

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Satellite Image - Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (2010) - Gulf of Mexico. Depth of 5,000 ft (1,500 m) at28.736667°N 88.386944°W

Satellite imaging in regard to maritime security is the adaptation of new technologies to monitor, regulate, and collect data in oceans across the globe. Overall to ensure a safe environment between all actors at sea. Since the ocean covers 71% of the planet it's deemed quite difficult to regulate and monitor.[1] It's crucial to have these systems in place as there is low risk to reward ratio concerning the illicit activities that take place in the ocean domain.[2] A spectrum of actors in maritime security now utilize these tools to offer comprehensive coverage in the vast environment of the ocean which are useful in several regards. This includes vessel identification, tracking, oil spill detectors, anomalies in maritime environment changes and ensuring overall safety in the maritime domain.[3]

The use of the tools can create a more efficient, safe and opportune way of navigating and mitigating threats at sea. These radars and satellites operate around the clock, some examples of these technologies include ENVISAT and RADARSAT-1, Short range tracking initiated by the AIS, VMS or ICSS (integrated coastal surveillance systems).[4] Although satellite imaging has a promising future in its development and maritime regulation, it faces adversities. Notably similar to the challenges that AI development faces. Examples include data collection regulation, invasion of privacy and data transparency.[5] Although past correct moral uses the technology can be deemed to be extremely useful and beneficial to masses around the globe.

Uses

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Oil Spills

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Satellites play a vital role in environmental security, they are a crucial part in regards to tracking oil spills. Oil spills not only heavily impact the food supply of the ocean, they wreak havoc on the fishing industry and simultaneously cost billions to clean in the process[4]. Sateilites can be used to passivly observe the ocean surface to find oil spills and midgate them from spreading further, both airborne and and spaceborne systems are capable of doing so. The satellites used in this context would be RADARSAT, ENVISAT, and MODIS.[6] These satellites can attest to their abilities to track spills from the Deepwater horizon spill, as they provided crucial data for coordinating the clean-up. These radars use systems like Synthetic Aperture Radar, Optical sensors and Multispectral and Hyperspectral sensors.[7]

Illicit Activity

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Acts of piracy and illegal maneuvers are common at sea due to the naturally vast environment and initial difficulty to track[1]. Tracking illegal activities requires a vast blend of sophisticated technologies to effectively address various illicit activities. These include maritime piracy, illegal fishing, smuggling and human trafficking.[8] The ability to execute effective vessel tracking creates a safer environment at sea. Often Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and Automatic Identification System (AIS) are used to monitor and keep track of vessels' behavior and activity. A relevant case in relation would be NATO's counter-piracy mission off the coast of Somalia,[9] or Unregulated fishing monitoring (IUU).

Logisitics

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Satellite imaging is important for logistics and creates security and safety through route optimization and navigation safety. They help detect and monitor potential hazards like icebergs, weather and other obstructions..[10] By analyzing the ocean surface shipping companies can optimize for the most efficient routes and ensure there is no obstruction between vessels reducing the risk of collision, delays or not crossing into restricted areas.[2] Even more notably significant would be accident response capabilities, satellites can provide emergence coordination and help respond to natural disasters by creating comprehensive overviews of data needed[4]

Technology

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Satelites Technologies
No. Satelites Sensor(s) Orgin
1 ENVISAT[11]
  • Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR)
  • Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS)
  • Advanced Along-Track Scanning Radiometer (AATSR)
  • Microwave Radiometer (MWR)
  • Radar Altimeter 2 (RA-2)
 European Space Agency (ESA)
2 RADARSAT Series[12] Canadian Space Agency (CSA)
3 MODIS[13]
  • Visible and Near-Infrared Bands (VNIR)
  • Shortwave Infrared Bands (SWIR)
  • Midwave Infrared Bands (MWIR)
  • Thermal Infrared Bands (TIR)
 United States (NASA)
4 Landsat Series[14] (NASA/USGS) United States

(NASA)

5 Jason Series[15] NASA, CNES , EUMETSAT, and NOAA
6 HY-1 and HY-2[16]
  • Ocean Color and Temperature Scanner (OCTS)
  • Coastal Zone Imager (CZI)
  • Ultraviolet Imager (UVI)
  • Radar Altimeter (RA)
  • Microwave Scatterometer (MSC)
  • Scanning Microwave Radiometer (MWR)
  • Laser Retroreflector Array (LRA)
 China National Space Administration (CNSA)
7 Sentinel-1/2[17] European Space Agency (ESA)

Challenges

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Despite having a large ROI when it comes to creating safety and security, Satellite imaging is without its faults and faces challenges to integrate further. Notably regulatory and policy issues come to light during this discussion. There are moral debates towards mass data collection as they often infringe on privacy and need careful management to be executed in a humane way..[18] Different countries also are of different viewpoints of data collection and varying regulations in regard to the use of satellite data for surveillance. Therefore making it difficult to coordinate and synchronize between borders.[19] Legal challenges are deemed complex as well in the scope of international waters as monitoring involves complex legal frameworks to navigate, essentially creating several covert barriers to even using satellite imaging. Some examples of current legislation would be the US senate Orbits Act[20] or EU Space Strategy for Security and Defence.[21] Although it can be noted that legislation often falls behind development in this global tech race, leaving uncharted legal territories that are virtually years behind tech development. Therefore, the debate based on the moral uses of sateiltlies are yet to be decided[18]

Beyond legal constraints the development and launching of satellites is extremely expensive. Costing 50 million on the low end just to get to space, and 400 million on the high end.[22] They are also subject to the environment and good working conditions in order to be operational, deeming them unreliable for operation at times. Cloud cover can obscure optical satellite sensors inhibiting their ability to function properly[19]. The same can be said for rough ocean conditions which can specifically affect the sensors that rely on surface reflections. Technical challenges are also present as satellites are hyper complex and a new technology, not to mention they generate enormous amounts of data that needs to be processed, stored and analyzed which requires sophisticated algorithms, mass computer processing power and substantial bandwidths.[23] Addressing these multiple issues deems it difficult to execute operations although maritime satellites offer one of a kind services that are needed to create a safe environment at sea.

References

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  1. ^ a b Salerno, Emanuele; Di Paola, Claudio; Lo Duca, Angelica (January 2024). "Remote Sensing for Maritime Monitoring and Vessel Identification". Remote Sensing. 16 (5): 776. Bibcode:2024RemS...16..776S. doi:10.3390/rs16050776. ISSN 2072-4292.
  2. ^ a b Pekkanen, Saadia M.; Aoki, Setsuko; Mittleman, John (2022-10-01). "Small Satellites, Big Data: Uncovering the Invisible in Maritime Security". International Security. 47 (2): 177–216. doi:10.1162/isec_a_00445. ISSN 0162-2889.
  3. ^ SU, Weiguang; SU, Fenzhen; ZHOU, Chenghu; DU, Yunyan (2012-09-24). "Optical Satellite Remote Sensing Capabilities Analysis of the Marine Oil Spill". Geo-information Science. 14 (4): 523–530. doi:10.3724/sp.j.1047.2012.00523. ISSN 1560-8999.
  4. ^ a b c Brown, Carl E (January 2005). "A review of current global oil spill surveillance, monitoring and remote sensing capabilities". Research Gate.
  5. ^ "Privacy and Veracity Implications of the Use of Satellite Imagery from Private Companies as Evidence in Human Rights Investigations". 2023-11-29. Retrieved 2024-08-06.
  6. ^ "MODIS Website". modis.gsfc.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2024-08-06.
  7. ^ Solberg, Anne H. S.; Brekke, Camilla; Husoy, Per Ove (March 2007). "Oil Spill Detection in Radarsat and Envisat SAR Images". IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing. 45 (3): 746–755. Bibcode:2007ITGRS..45..746S. doi:10.1109/TGRS.2006.887019. ISSN 0196-2892.
  8. ^ Ruxandra-Laura, BOSILCA (2016-03-10). "The Use of Satellite Technologies for Maritime Surveillance: An Overview of EU Initiatives". Incas Bulletin. 8 (1): 151–161. doi:10.13111/2066-8201.2016.8.1.14. ISSN 2066-8201.
  9. ^ Wallace, Tye R. (2010-10-27). Improving Counter-Piracy Operations in East Africa (Report). Fort Belvoir, VA: Defense Technical Information Center. doi:10.21236/ada535303.
  10. ^ . 2017-01-01. doi:10.3030/730098 http://dx.doi.org/10.3030/730098. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)
  11. ^ www.eoportal.org https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/envisa. Retrieved 2024-08-07. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  12. ^ "RADARSAT-2", SpringerReference, Berlin/Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag, doi:10.1007/springerreference_29333 (inactive 1 November 2024), retrieved 2024-08-07{{citation}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of November 2024 (link)
  13. ^ Cooper, C.K.; Forristall, G.Z. (1995-05-01). "On the Use of SateIlite Wave Data To Derice Extreme Criteria". All Days. OTC. doi:10.4043/7681-ms.
  14. ^ "Supplemental Information 1: Different bands of Landsat 5 TM, Landsat 7 (ETM) and Landsat 8 (OLI) used for Band Combination". doi:10.7717/peerj.13435/supp-1. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  15. ^ "JASON-3 Mission". National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
  16. ^ "HY-2 (Haiyang-2) / Ocean-2 - eoPortal". www.eoportal.org. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
  17. ^ "Explore Copernicus satellite missions". Sentinel Online. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
  18. ^ a b "Space and satellite wrap up – Legal and regulatory developments in 2023". www.twobirds.com. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
  19. ^ a b Zhang, Max; Zhang, Jiaqi; Yang, Bojun (2024-02-15). "The evidentiary challenges of using satellite technologies to enforce ship-source marine pollution standards on the high seas". Heliyon. 10 (3): e25141. Bibcode:2024Heliy..1025141Z. doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e25141. ISSN 2405-8440. PMC 10844276. PMID 38322908.
  20. ^ https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/447
  21. ^ "EU Space Strategy for Security and Defence - European Commission". defence-industry-space.ec.europa.eu. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
  22. ^ Urbahs, Aleksandrs; Kravchenko, Sergey; Urbaha, Margarita; Carjova, Kristine; Panova, Natalja; Chatys, Rafal (2021-06-23). "Latlaunch Air-Launch System for Low-Cost Launching of Small Satellites into Low Earth Orbit". Aviation. 25 (2): 73–78. doi:10.3846/aviation.2021.12382. ISSN 1648-7788.
  23. ^ Anselmo, Luciano (2021-04-20), "The use of space and satellites: problems and challenges", Technology and International Relations, Edward Elgar Publishing, doi:10.4337/9781788976077.00014, ISBN 978-1-78897-607-7, retrieved 2024-08-07
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