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Elvia H. Thompson
Headquarters, Washington           May 30, 2003
(Phone 202/358-1696)

Ed Loyd/Alisa Harrison
Department of Agriculture, Washington
(Phone 202/720-4623)

RELEASE 03-188

NASA AND USDA LAUNCH PARTNERSHIP TO ADVANCE COOPERATION
IN EARTH SCIENCE TECHNOLOGIES AND APPLICATIONS

     U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Ann M. 
Veneman and NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe today launched a 
partnership that will use Earth Science technologies to 
enhance the competitiveness of American farmers and ranchers 
and help protect the environment. 

O'Keefe and Veneman signed a Memorandum of Understanding 
(MOU) that enables USDA to draw on the best scientific and 
technical information available from NASA research in Earth 
observation and systems engineering. The primary purpose of 
this new cooperative effort is to help increase the 
production efficiency of farmers while continuing to reduce 
the cost of production. Earth observation technologies 
provide insights into climate and precipitation patterns, 
crop health, airborne particles, and water availability.

"Precision agriculture practices are helping farmers improve 
productivity while protecting our natural resources," said 
Secretary Veneman. "This partnership with NASA will make 
available remote sensing technologies that will advance 
precision agriculture." 

This joint endeavor also spawns information that contributes 
to interagency cooperation on climate change through the 
Climate Change Research Program to develop a scientific 
understanding of the Earth's response to natural or human-
induced changes.

Veneman said that such technology would also be highlighted 
at the upcoming Ministerial and Expo on Agricultural Science 
and Technology in Sacramento, Calif., on June 23-25. 
Ministers from over 180 countries will discuss and share 
science and technological innovation in agriculture at the 
conference.

"NASA is pleased to be part of this worthwhile effort, which 
will benefit all Americans," said Administrator O'Keefe. 
"NASA's unique ability to view the Earth from space enhances 
our ability to anticipate climate change, understand weather 
and natural hazards, as well as to mitigate and assess the 
effects of natural and human-induced disasters. The 
information we provide will allow our partners to make 
critical, accurate and timely decisions."

An immediate outcome of the new partnership is a $1 million, 
three-year program to establish Geospatial Extension Programs 
at land grant universities. Geospatial Extension specialists 
work closely with NASA and USDA to address Earth Science 
applications and the remote sensing needs of the agricultural 
community. 

The MOU focuses on cooperation in the following five areas:
*  Carbon Sequestration for Carbon Management
*  Environmental Models for Biological Invasive Species
*  Water Cycle Science for Water Management and Conservation
*  Weather and Climate Prediction Research for Agricultural 
Competitiveness
*  Regional, National, and International Atmospheric 
Predictions for Air Quality Management

NASA's Earth Science Enterprise is dedicated to understanding 
the Earth as an integrated system and applying Earth System 
Science to improve prediction of climate, weather, and 
natural hazards using the unique vantage point of space.

For more information on NASA's Earth Science program, see

http://www.earth.nasa.gov


For information on the Ministerial and Expo on Agricultural 
Science and Technology, see 

http://www.fas.usda.gov

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