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February 2006 |
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Contents Security aspects of disaster response
management © Cranfield University 2006
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Security aspects of disaster response management The management of disaster response is a multi-agency affair in which governmental bodies, non governmental organisations, the military, emergency services, UN agencies, community agencies and academics are all involved, either 'on the ground' or researching better preparation and prevention. Crises appear in every kind, from natural disasters to civil emergencies to war zones. The following selection of resources focuses on conflict and security aspects of disaster management. United Nations
Security Council Resolutions United Nations Development
Programme International Strategy
for Disaster Reduction United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) ELDIS European
Union Humanitarian Aid Department (ECHO) Overseas
Development Institute (ODI) ActionAid Centre for Research on the
Epidemiology of Disasters UK Ministry
Of Defence E-Mine Program on Humanitarian Policy
and Conflict Research ReliefWeb Keeping up to date in your field using RSS feeds RSS (Really Simple Syndication or Rich Site Summary) enables
you to choose the Web content you're interested in and have it delivered
directly to your news reader as soon as it is published. The process is much
quicker than clicking from Web site to Web site to check for new information,
as you have had to in the past. So make the most of this button -
How do I start using RSS feeds? Firstly, you need to become aware of which sites that you regularly use already have RSS feeds. (Not all sites have yet adopted RSS, but the facility is growing in popularity). Usually the button will be displayed but alternatively there could just be a simple link to a "news feed". Click on it to display the feed, which is identified by the .xml or .rss extension at the end of the Web address (URL), then simply copy and paste this URL into your news reader.
Where can I find a news reader? Once you have identified some useful sites containing feeds you will need a news reader, which enables you to view them all from one place and saves you from visiting each site individually. Bloglines is browser-based. You just need to set up a free account and create a password. Once you've done this, click on the "My feeds" tab. Click on the "Add" option and then put the RSS feed URL you wish to track in the box on the right hand side of the screen. Once the set up is complete, your feed will be listed in the panel on the left hand side of the screen.
Site of the month: AirTeamImages.com Although AERADE covers a wide range of Web-based resources, our selection policy has undoubtedly tended to lean toward the inclusion of text-based content, particularly full text material such as technical reports and other documents. This issue's site of the month is something a little different - an online aviation image library. AirTeamImages.com claims to be the largest aircraft stock photo library designed for the aerospace and related industries. What distinguishes this site from other similar services is that the team of photographers have specific experience and interest in aviation.
It is very well designed, and easy to use, but it should be noted that it is a commercial service, and there are terms and conditions for using the pictures it provides. Nevertheless, it is a rich source of thumbnail images which can be browsed or searched. The browse headings include: Airliners, Military, Warbirds, Business Aircraft, General Aviation, Helicopters, Airport Life, Aviation News, Airshows and Events, and Wow! (high impact photos). In addition to searching for aircraft pictures using basic keywords, you can also limit your search by manufacturer, operator, location, country, airport and photographer amongst others! Usefully, the site also offers an alerting service (via RSS feed) to let you know about the latest photos as they added. We are currently considering the provision of an image gallery within AERADE. If you would be interested in accessing aviation and aerospace images via our service in the future, please let us know. Are we missing anything? The AERADE team are responsive to new hot topics emerging in the fields of aerospace and defence, and we add new sections to the service covering these areas as soon as we become aware of them. In the past, we have created new sections for general aviation, international relations and the history of conflict, amongst others. We have also expanded our sections on aerodynamics and air transportation, to create appropriate sub-categories and make the sites included in them easier to browse. If there are any subjects that AERADE doesn't cover, that you think it should, or if you would like to see particular topics covered in more depth, please contact us and let us know. We are committed to providing you with the best service that we can, and we want AERADE to remain relevant and useful to all our customers, wherever you are and whatever you are researching. Turkish delight: A personal report of an eclipse One of our aerospace information specialists, Cathy Carr, viewed the total eclipse on 29th March 2006 at Side in Turkey. This is her account of the phenomenon. Our hotel in Side was in the middle of the path of totality, and had plenty of terraces so there was no problem in finding a spot from which to watch the eclipse.
Watching from first contact was exciting enough and then the last 10 minutes or so saw the light change to a dimmer, silvery grey light. As the moment of the total eclipse came closer, time seemed to slow down, almost grinding to a halt. Gradually, gradually and even more gradually the thin sliver of sun disappeared with a brief glimpse of baileys beads followed by a wonderful diamond ring, which through our eclipse glasses looked like a profile of a large gold setting the diamond rests in.
Then what emotions followed!! The total eclipse was a majestic beauty to behold. A big black disc was surrounded by a mesmerising corona, from which sparks seemed to eject. After some initial screams of delight everyone went very quiet, but there was a brief noise which emanated from the eclipse chaser aeroplane which must have been following the central line of totality. I wondered who was on board and what they could see and how long they would observe totality.
I had been expecting it to get quite dark but it was more like twilight with a 360 degree sunset - the colours were magnificent and any picture you see just doesn't do the phenomena justice. Even words fail to describe it adequately. All pictures look black and white but it was so colourful with a lovely deep velvet blue behind the eclipse and all vivid shades of blue to the horizon where any clouds around were a sunset hue, again of various shades.
Venus was very bright but I didn't have the equipment to be able to take the eclipse and Venus in the same shot (my equipment was very primitive but my digital captured my best shots). We weren't able to see any other stars which was probably due to the haze and some wispy high cloud that was around. Suddently the sky started to brighten and the second diamond ring was appearing. With even just a fraction of the Sun reappearing it was if someone had switched the lights back on. Observing the progress to 4th contact was almost reassuring us that the total eclipse did actually happen and it wasn't a figment of our imaginations. Related Web sites NASA solar eclipse
page, containing future predictions Recent AERADE news features You may have noticed the news feature at the bottom of the AERADE home page. We aim keep it continually updated with links to major news stories and to significant reports that have recently been published in the fields of aerospace and defence. In case you missed them, we are repeating some of the main news we have featured in the past quarter. New UK Secretary of State for Defence In a Cabinet reshuffle, Des Browne has replaced John Reid as the new UK Defence Secretary. Pioneer pilot killed in crash 21st April 2006. SCOTT Crossfield, a pioneer test pilot who was the first to fly at twice the speed of sound, died when his single-engine plane crashed in Georgia. Read more... Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) recommendations on Airbus rudders The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) has released two Aviation Safety Recommendations following the incident (A05F0047) in which an Airbus A310-300 lost its rudder after leaving Varadero, Cuba, for Quebec/Jean Lesage International Airport, Quebec, in March 2005. Mobile services on aircraft This discussion paper has been prepared by Ofcom (Office of Communications), and issued on 10th April 2006. Ofcom has produced the paper in response to approaches received from stakeholders from the avionic and telecommunications sectors suggesting that it should review the wireless telegraphy licensing regime in order to permit the provision and use of mobile services on aircraft. It covers only the issues relevant to Ofcom's area of responsibility; and focuses exclusively on the specific issues raised by mobile services on aircraft. The paper sets out Ofcom's understanding of the complex issues surrounding the potential launch of GSM 1800 MHz services on aircraft. Ministry of Defence: Reserve Forces Reserve Forces have provided a vital contribution to recent military operations, Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament. As part of the biggest mobilisation since the 1956 Suez Crisis, over 12,000 Reserves have so far served in Iraq. Ministry of Defence: Progress in Combat Identification Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported on the progress made by the Ministry of Defence in implementing the recommendations of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in its 2002 report on combat identification. Consultation on SESAR (Single European Sky ATM Research) Consultation
on a proposal for a Council Regulation on the establishment of a Joint
Undertaking to develop the new generation European Air Traffic Management (ATM)
System (SESAR - Single European Sky ATM Research). |
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