Point Asia

[ncr]

Pointasia.com - August 31, 2006
Pongthai writes: Not sure you have posted this item onto 2bangkok: check this out www.pointasia.com. It’s a google earth-like application developed by Thais. More detailed satellite image than in Google earth for Thailand.

Everything in Thai language only. Download page (http://203.146.249.195/PointAsia/download.asp), registration page (http://203.146.249.195/PointAsia/register.asp) (simple: you need to specify name, user name, telephone and a valid email address - they'll send you a password for logon). This application uses IKONOS, as opposed to QuickBird for Google Earth..... slightly lower resolution (1m and 0.6m respectively), but more extensive coverage for Thailand.

Well done.

[Ahoerstemeier]

This application uses IKONOS, as opposed to QuickBird for Google Earth..... slightly lower resolution (1m and 0.6m respectively), but more extensive coverage for Thailand.

Well done.
Well, the user interface could still improve, I haven't yet found out how to create pointmarks correctly, which is quite easy in Google Earth. But for a first version it's already quite good.

However what is more sad is the fact that most places I planned to look up in higher resolution were not yet covered, especially the south is widely uncovered - just Phuket, some Phang Nga, Ranong and Chumphon, and Samui and small parts of Nakhon Si Thammarat. What is the date of these images? I tried to find Wat Rat Uppatham (Wat Bang Riang) in Thap Phut, Phang Nga - I don't know the exact location, but browsing around I couldn't find any hilltop which fit it either. As that temple is rather recent old images would explain my failure easily. However for Bangkok I could see the Taksin extension of the Skytrain well, so at least these must be rather current.

Lets see if now Google Earth takes the competition seriously and add more high resolution data themselves...

[ncr]

However what is more sad is the fact that most places I planned to look up in higher resolution were not yet covered, especially the south is widely uncovered...and maybe you noticed that the palace areas in Bangkok (Chitralada, Sra Pathum) are blurred out (same as in the Space Imaging satellite atlas for Bangkok), though everyone can clearly see them on Google Earth....

[ncr]

However what is more sad is the fact that most places I planned to look up in higher resolution were not yet covered, especially the south is widely uncovered - just Phuket, some Phang Nga, Ranong and Chumphon, and Samui and small parts of Nakhon Si Thammarat. What is the date of these images?No idea. Possibly varies from area to area. But not older than 6 years, in any case: the IKONOS satellite (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IKONOS) was launched in September 1999 and has been delivering commercial imagery since January 2000. (QuickBird (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QuickBird) launch: October 2001.)

As for Southern Thailand, you also have to keep in mind the weather conditions. The perhumid climate of the Inner Tropics entails a near-constant cloud cover, which is a real pain for earth observation.....

[ncr]

Just found this:

overview (http://img111.imageshack.us/img111/348/kpw1qj5.jpg)
closer (http://img111.imageshack.us/img111/6360/kpw2sg8.jpg)
very close (http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/1636/kpw3nb5.jpg)

Nice imagery from IKONOS here..... it's possible to see all the details of the complex.

-The road from the car park coming from the top right corner over the barren plateau / rock outcrop. (Makes for a nice walk in the blazing heat.)
-The white conglomerate is the ramshackle 'border control' and market / food vendors area.
-South from there, the initial long flight of stairs and the causeway with its succession of gopuras, libraries and the main sanctuary (compare the plan at Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prasat_Preah_Vihear)).
-Snaking to the left is the steep access path from the Cambodian side.

Google Earth (http://img247.imageshack.us/img247/3057/kpw4bm3.jpg) has no high-res imagery to offer, but gives us the approximate elevations:

highest point: 637m
at the tip: 550m
Cambodian lowland: 100-120m

The placemark is my own GPS coordinate (taken somewhere at the southern end of the temple complex/viewing point, I think, though I cannot remmeber exactly - that was 5 years ago).