Richard Smith

Eyes in the Sky Richard Smith

This book is a must read for anyone concerned with climate change and lack of Government action addressing this rapidly unfolding crisis.




The authors, tell their story of introducing the new technology of observing Earth from Space into the WA Government, following the first images of Earth being sent back by man from space some 50 years ago.




Earth Observing Satellites (EOS) soon followed giving a new and unique view of the Earth revealing the massive human impacts driving climate change, species extinction and human conflicts. For the first time in history key WA Government agencies had unparalleled access to the means of measuring and sustainably managing WA's natural assets across the whole continent and surrounding oceans. Many new and innovative applications of EOS were developed.




However these applications encountered the fundamental conflict between Ecology and Economics, which caused a drastic cutback when WA's Land Information Authority found that in pursuit of its commercial goals, sustainability was unsustainable. A fatal paradox that the authors argue, urgently needs to be addressed if climate catastrophe for future generations is to be avoided.