2013 - University College Cork

RESEARCH PROJECTS
30
Geomatics and Remote Sensing
SATELLITE BASED MARITIME SURVEILLANCE
Research Centre/Department/School: CMRC
Start Year: 2012
End Year: 2014
Funding Body: European Space Agency
Researchers: Ying Wu, Anthony Patterson,
Cathal O’Mahony, Chiara Pratola
Contact PI: Anthony Patterson (a.patterson@ucc.ie);
Cathal O’Mahony (c.omahony@ucc.ie)
Website: http://www.anistiamo.org/
Two recently started projects, funded by the European Space Agency, are building on previous
research that focused on how information could be derived from satellite observations to improve
maritime security. Maritime agencies (e.g. naval organisations, coast guards) are the users of such
satellite-based products and services. A focus of the first project called ANISTIAMO, and led by
Kongsberg Satellite Services in Norway, is to develop the capacity in Ireland to implement and
operate software to detect ships in radar (synthetic aperture radar) satellite imagery. In addition to
ship location, research will also be carried out to determine ship course and speed and the ability
to track vessels over time.
The second project called Next Generation Recognised Maritime Picture (RMP), and led by Skytek,
a Dublin based company, aims to greatly enhance the quality and accuracy of the recognised
maritime picture for the Irish Naval Service (INS) through integration of data sources not currently
used to generate an RMP. One of the key data sources will be satellite AIS (Automatic Identification
System). In these projects the CMRC is focussing on radar data processing and analysis, data mining
and pattern recognition activities as well as working closely with the end users which include the
Irish Naval Service and the Irish Coast Guard. The other Irish partner in these projects in addition
to the CMRC and Skytek is the National Space Centre, based near Midleton in Co. Cork.
KEY PUBLICATIONS & OUTPUTS
CMRC will produce software components encapsulating the algorithms tested and validated within these
projects. These components will be capable of being reused within other systems, particularly within the
maritime security domain. It is hoped that the overall system will be used not only by the INS and Irish Coast
Guard, but by other small navies and coastguard services throughout the world.
Irish Naval Service
Vessels in action. Image
Copyright to the Irish
Naval Service