Philipsburg:--- UTS has made a Chippie data SIM card available to the Hydrological Institute UNESCO-IHE in Delft, the Netherlands to allow for mapping of the sea floor (bathymetric survey) in the coastal waters of St. Maarten. A jet ski with survey equipment which utilizes GSM technology will start surveying from the Philipsburg area and will continue mapping the sea basin surrounding the island over the next 10 to 14 days. The survey is part of a proactive disaster management approach called "Hazard and Vulnerability Assessment Project" being taken by disaster management organizations within the region with assistance from a number of development organizations. The aim is to examine hazards posed by inland and coastal flooding across the region. The hazards under consideration involve flash floods, coastal storm surges and tsunamis. The information derived from this survey and other research that has been done will lead to the development of a Disaster Plan and an early warning system. Two Dutch University Delft students will carry out the survey under the supervision of Professor Zoran Vojnovic of the hydrological institute UNESCO-IHE in Delft, the Netherlands. In addition to the bathymetric survey, NASA will also be taking satellite imagery of the island in the same time period using its E-1 satellite to capture high resolution imagery of coastal waters. 'An early warning system can enable authorities to save many lives in the face of a disaster. We are pleased that our technologies can a useful tool in a project that is so very important to public safety' says UTS Marketing and Communications Officer, Ivy Lambert. University of Delft student, Erik van Ettinger adds 'Using the Chippie SIM card we will be able to connect back to our equipment that is on shore, which will map in real-time where exactly we are on the water. This is called Realitime Kinematic (RTK). We are very happy with the cooperation that we have received from UTS. This will really help us to complete our project successfully.'
Philipsburg:--- UTS has made a Chippie data SIM card available to the Hydrological Institute UNESCO-IHE in Delft, the Netherlands to allow for mapping of the sea floor (bathymetric survey) in the coastal waters of St. Maarten. A jet ski with survey equipment which utilizes GSM technology will start surveying from the Philipsburg area and will continue mapping the sea basin surrounding the island over the next 10 to 14 days. The survey is part of a proactive disaster management approach called "Hazard and Vulnerability Assessment Project" being taken by disaster management organizations within the region with assistance from a number of development organizations. The aim is to examine hazards posed by inland and coastal flooding across the region. The hazards under consideration involve flash floods, coastal storm surges and tsunamis. The information derived from this survey and other research that has been done will lead to the development of a Disaster Plan and an early warning system. Two Dutch University Delft students will carry out the survey under the supervision of Professor Zoran Vojnovic of the hydrological institute UNESCO-IHE in Delft, the Netherlands. In addition to the bathymetric survey, NASA will also be taking satellite imagery of the island in the same time period using its E-1 satellite to capture high resolution imagery of coastal waters. 'An early warning system can enable authorities to save many lives in the face of a disaster. We are pleased that our technologies can a useful tool in a project that is so very important to public safety' says UTS Marketing and Communications Officer, Ivy Lambert. University of Delft student, Erik van Ettinger adds 'Using the Chippie SIM card we will be able to connect back to our equipment that is on shore, which will map in real-time where exactly we are on the water. This is called Realitime Kinematic (RTK). We are very happy with the cooperation that we have received from UTS. This will really help us to complete our project successfully.'
