The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) will soon join a select group of institutions providing rescue and relief support to ships in distress across the globe. India’s Resourcesat-2, the remote sensing satellite to be launched this December will carry on board a state-of-the-art Space-Based Automatic Identification System (AIS-SB) meant to track ships and report if they are in trouble, said an Isro spokesman. “The payload was built by COMDEV of Canada, a group known for its expertise in space engineering and hardware,” S. Satish, director (public relations and publications) told Deccan Chronicle. “The AIS-SB will monitor the movement of all ships registered with us on a round-the-clock basis irrespective of their location. We will be able to offer instant rescue and relief operations to the ships if there is any accident.” He said this will be the first time an instrument of this kind will be used in an Indian satellite. Mr Satish also pointed out that Isro’s move to have a space-based automatic identification system of its own was in response to the rapid growth of the shipping industry globally. “Any distress call will be picked up by the AIS-SB and relayed to the agencies concerned for immediate action,” he added. Bhaskar Kunhi, chief pilot, Cochin Port Trust, welcomed the AIS-SB. “Our sailors are dependent on INMARSAT, the international marine satellites for all communication purposes.

The AIS-SB will make it easy for our ships to communicate much faster,” he said. Mr Satish pointed out that a similar space-based automatic identification system had played a pivotal role in providing security for the Vancouver Olympics held earlier this year.

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