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F i g u r e 1 NOAA caught Rita’s eye in thisGOES-12 satellite image at 1-km resolution.Courtesy of NOAA./ R e p o r t e r / / D e n v e r , C o l o .w w w . i m a g i n g n o t e s . c o mSorting order from the ferocity ofsummer’s large tropical and sub-tropical storms is a developing art thatmerges human wit with quick response experience, remote sensing technologyand computer science. The events of 2004 and 2005 remindedthe imaging community of how severely hurricanes and tsunamis candestroy food and water supplies while completely obfuscating the ingressand egress by which first responders would logically hope to retrieve theimperiled, the wounded and the dead.During and after such tempests, image modeling geographers trytheir best to superimpose known reality onto the windy, dark canvassesof the moment. It isn’t an easy trick. Ask anyone who watched hurricanesKatrina and Rita storm ashore like a pair of enraged sister shrews whowere in no mood to accommodate any of the personnel in charge of GISnetworks or rescue efforts.Some who worked the front lines can remember all too well the illequippedstaging areas and the few stressed-out jurisdictional spittingmatches — experiences that made some already difficult situations evenmore so. In the months that have elapsed, they have had a chance toreview the massive body of logistical intelligence that was collected fromsatellites and aircraft, as well as to analyze the more human aspects ofthe rescue response.From a technical perspective, remote sensing’s contribution to lastyear’s efforts appears to have carried with it fewer technical glitches thansome other chores that were necessary in order to stage command posts,deploy rescue teams and distribute supplies. Pilots and air controllersexercised their common sense training when it came to flying withinproximity of Mother Nature’s hissy fits. If anything, they may have donetheir job too well: Large organizations like the National Oceanic andAtmospheric Administration (NOAA) collected more images than couldbe digested by the makeshift networks set up to process them.NOAA and 3001, Inc. (Fairfax, Va.) recorded so much imagery inthe days after Katrina hit the coast that software experts “didn’t reallyknow how to process it,” recalls Louis Demargne, director of corporatemarketing for EarthData International Inc.s u m m e r 2 0 0 633