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Remote Sensing Center of Mongolia - Brief Outlook

Dr. Saandar . M
Remote Sensing Center
State Department of Geoesy and Cartographyof the MPR
210644, Ikh Toirong 4
Ulaanbaatar 44
Mongolia
Tel : 29687


1. history And Main Activities
A newest and most dynamically developing office of the state Department of Geodesy and Cartography of the MPR – the Remote Sensing Center (RSCM) was established in 1980 on commercial basis to meet growing needs of agriculture, geology, water resources, forestry, urban and rural development as well as non-renewable natural resources’ management with respect to remote sensing techniques and development of geo-based information system.

The main activities of RSCM include acquisition, data banking , preprocessing and processing of high-resolution remote sensing data from three levels, such as:
  • satellite;
  • airborne;
  • ground-based stationary and mobile systems
Meeting the needs of dramatically growing user community in end-products geo-based data and using analog instrumentation and photographic facilities the RSCM is providing them with photo-and thematic maps, contact prints, enlargements and mosaics.

The RSCM has cooperation agreements with about 15-20 organizations and institutions and distributes remote sensing products for 40-60 end-users.

The RSCM improves and expends its services based on continuous application-oriented research and expands its services based on continuous application-oriented research and development ( R & D).

The main goal of R & D is to achieve reliable and and costeffective remote sensing techniques and establishment of integrated GIS (IGIS) for geology, forestry, agriculture, especially on the field of crop status assessment and monitoring, vegetation damage detection, soil erosion and water-resources preservation applications, etc.

These are not the full list of the RSCMs tasks to give a valuable impact on the development of Mongolia.

2. Modern Times and Future Outlook
With a population of about 2 millions, Mongolia has was territory of 1565.6 thousand square kilometers and rich natural resources to explore.

For example, Mongolia stands in third place among the socialist countries and in 17 in the World by territory, through it stands in last place among socialist countries by studied square kilometer area.

Mongolian economy is making important achievements in the agricultural and industrial development, which is colliding with ecological environment .

All these are the complexity of factors of futures development of Mongolia upon which we have to consider carefully.

System analysis to the above-mentioned factors requests completely new approach to planning and management of the national economy sourced by nation-wide integrated Geographic Information System.

As far as the agriculture concerns, a better control and monitoring of livestock, pastures, crop-fields, soil erosion, water resources, forestry by IGIS will contribute to obtain the balanced and rationalized exploitation of bio-resources.

As to the industrial development of Mongolia, the RSCM will help to explore a mineral resources, contribute to urban and rural development.

Taking into consideration the future abilities of the RSCM as a global and permanently functioning geo-based information system for surveying of natural resources and environmental monitoring of Mongolia, the RSCM will enable to collect, process and disseminate the relevant information for planning and organization of infrastructure of the national economy.

And more, the RSCM as a multipurpose body will provide the high-level decision-makers with invaluable basic information for analyzing and monitoring the national economy.

Compared to academic researches in the field of remote sensing the RSCM activities in a framework of applied research will give an immediate results and direct revenues to the national economy with less expenses.

In this sense a development of the RSCM activities as applied science in Mongolia must be principally actual and prior task.

3. International Ties and Support
With the technical support of the USSR and GDR and financed by the Mongolian Government the RSCM was provided by analog optical precsion equipment and airborne system.

Some high-resolution remote sensing data such as photographic images are obtained from the USSR ( COSMOS Satellite System) on a commercial basis.

In co-operation with the GDR’s related companies an analog and digital image processing techniques is being working out, and a visual interpretation technology development co-operation with the Poland and Hunquary is on the way.

But the above – mentioned activities are far insufficient to perform the RSCM’s mandatory tasks in developing IGIS in Mongolia.

The main obstacle is that Mongolia has not ground station for receiving satellite data. Some of the problems are arising from a jack of professional manpower, modern digital data processing equipment to collect, process and disseminate already existing remote sensing data.

The Mongolian Government is contributing and will contribute significant funds for the development of the RSCM, but unabavaibility of high-technology products such as powerful electronic data processing (EDP) Systems, software products in the COMECON market and no contacts established with experienced in this field organizations i.e Remote Sensing Center FAO, Thailand National Remote Sensing Center and Remote Sensing Laboratory of Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok, Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo, International Institute for Aerospace Survey and Earth Sciences ( ITC), Enschede, Nether Lands etc. , are remote sensing activities in Monglia.

To facilitate the execution of important tasks of the national IGIS and related activities, the RSCM should obtain EDP system, software packages, ground station for receiving an appropriate data from satellites, mobile ground surveying equipment and upgrade the professional knowledge of the national personnel, in a one world the RSCM must be an active participant and subsystem of world global geo-based information system in central Asia.

To facilitate the execution of important tasks of the national IGIS and related activities, the RSCM should obtain EDP system, software packages, ground station for receiving an appropriate data from satellites, mobile ground surveying equipment and upgrade the professional knowledge of the national personnel, in a one world the RSCM must be an active participant and subsystem of world global geo-based information system in Central Asia.

A technical and financial support of American, Canadian, French and Japanese companies dealing in remote sensing activities all over the world such as EOSAT ( Earth Observation satellite company), MacDonald Dettwiller, Sepimage, Mitsubishi Electric Corp., NEC Corporation, RESTEC < Sumitomo Corporation Etc. For these purposes is highly appreciated and will bring a valuable support ot development of the national economy of the MPR.

4. Proposed Ground Station
The Mongolian Ground Station should receive, Record, correct and process digital imagery from all current and upcoming remote sensing satellites such as US LANDSAT series, French SPOT satellites and the planned radar Japanese Governments.

4.1 Location
The considered Mongolian Earth Resources Satellite Ground Station is to be located at Tolgoit ( 47, 54, N 106, 42 E) about 20 ki9lometres Ulaanbaatar city center.

4.2 Technical Capability
The Ground Station will consist of seven functional subsystems:
  1. Receiving Subsystem – receiving antenna with 10 m D for X, S, - and L Bands Data;
  2. Recording subsystem – receiving antenna with
  3. Integrated (spaceborne and airborne) remote sensing data processing subsystem – Geographic Information system and Geocoded Image Correction subsystem;
  4. Product generation subsystem, - digital film recorders;
  5. Photo processing subsystem – digital film recorders;
  6. Archival (retrieval) distribution – geo-referenced, geocoded data based , DTM, etc.
The planned coverage of Mongolian ground station ( about 2500 kilometres ) compreises the major part of the Monglion territory plus USSR and China.

In future considered Ground Station has to become fully integrated goe-Information network covering Central Asia and could be one of the node of world’s global resources information databases.

M. Saandar
Technical Manager :
The Remote Sensing Center
State Department of Geodesy and Cartography of the M.P.R.
210644 Ikh Toirong 4
Ulaanbaatar –44,. Mongolia
Tel. 29-687, 61 – 161
Cable : Ulaanbaatar 44 Geodesy


Schematic Chart of Mongolian Organization for Remote Sensing


Schematic Chart of Mongolian Organization for Rural Land Use and Applied Remote Sensing a