Discussion

An earthquake has struck a large city in a developing country, which has a relatively modern city centre, but large areas of high density, informal suburban housing on its outskirts. Several outlying towns were also affected. In planning the city's reconstruction following the earthquake, the Ministry of Rural and Urban Planning, together with an internal aid agency, is funding a project to map the extent of building damage. There was virtually no reliable digital geospatial data documenting the city's urban form before the earthquake, although following the disaster, building damage has been mapped on the ground by recovery teams equipped with differential Global Positioning System (GPS) units in some areas. However, access on the ground remains difficult in many areas, making a complete ground-based survey impossible. Both government and the international agency wish to use remotely sensed data to resolve this problem.

In a report (maximum 1,500 words), drawing on relevant literature, assess the strengths and limitations of data from different remote sensing systems for use in this scenario. Based on this assessment, which source of remotely sensed imagery would you consider using for this exercise?