Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
fundamental in this evolutionary process. Despite the intense and growing offer of
technologies, the adsorption of the new methods and products, which were slowly
converted from analog to digital, involves countless challenges, being slower than expected
or desired. It should be highlighted also that the conversion requires the review of many
concepts that need to be adapted to the new reality, as in the case of the sheets of charts in a
certain scale in view of the challenge of preparation of continuous bases.
Therefore, an interesting new panorama is configured, which presents a diversity of uses
with a growing demand for Geographic Information, associated, increasingly, with the use
of Geographic Information Systems and products originated from Remote Sensing. The lack
of control of individual actions, without the support of a detailed analysis on the real
potentialities of the new products, can entail serious problems caused by inappropriate use
of methods and/or inputs, making a wide discussion on the theme urgent, with
establishment of a set of rules that supports such discussions.
Considering the images from Remote Sensing as growingly important inputs for
cartography, it is emphasized that the diversity of new remote sensors, at different
acquisition levels, and values of resolution and accuracy, allows to meet a variety of
reference and thematic maps, in several scales.
2. Considerations on remote sensing in cartography
The use of remote sensing as important data source has been a reality for several decades, is
ongoing and will probably be part of the everyday life of the population for many years to
come - although most people are not even aware of it. The aerial level has supplied great
volumes of data for cartography since the beginning of the 20th Century, whether in
military or civilian applications, such as reference and thematic maps. In its evolution, it is
also considered that the great revolution of the orbital phase has as main marker the
launching of satellites focused on natural resources in the beginning of the 1970's.
In Brazil, practically all existent officially-based cartography was produced from aerial
photos and, despite receiving satellite images from Landsat on the Cuiabá (MT) land station
since 1973 in [1], only recently its use as input was adopted for the generation of reference
cartographic bases.
The diffusion of micro-information technology also helped to increase the availability of free
or low-cost images aimed at remote sensing image processing, contributing to a significant
increase in the number and diversity of uses and applications. This growth occurred both in
reference cartography as, mainly, in thematic cartography. Perhaps the climax of the
dissemination occurred with the launching of Google Earth in 2005 in [2], making such
products available for non-specialist users.
If on one hand such dissemination carted many benefits for most of the users (whether
specialized or not), on the other hand it may contribute for the generation of products which do
not present the expected, and often, required quality. Ignoring the phase of amazement which is
common after launching products which in some way become object of consumerism, the
