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Water dam failure: space-based monitoring system gets the go-ahead for expansion

By [email protected] - 23rd August 2019 - 08:21

HR Wallingford – a specialist in water research – will broaden its space-based dam monitoring system, DAMSAT, to include water dams in a bid to reduce the risk of failures. The UK Space Agency has extended the organisation’s funding following a pilot project to monitor tailings dams used to store toxic mine waste in Peru. Ultimately the technology could be employed worldwide to reduce the risks to those living downstream of dams. Over the next two years, HR Wallingford will use the ground-breaking DAMSAT software to monitor movement at several water dams in the Cerro de Pasco region of Peru. The system uses Earth Observation (EO) techniques – including the analysis of spectral responses and iron traces from satellite images as well as data from navigation systems – combined with real-time in-situ devices.www.hrwallingford.com