GTAC Overview

The U.S. Space & Rocket Center (USSRC) opened in 1970 as a not-for-profit agency of the State of Alabama (Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission, ref. Code of Alabama Section 41-9-430). As the home of the SPACE CAMP operations both domestice and worldwide, the Center is known as a world leader in immersive simulation and interactive training in the field of space science and technology. The USSRC also serves as the Marshall Space Flight Center NASA visitor center and houses the NASA Educator Training Facility serving an eight state region. The USSRC is located in Huntsville, Alabama and the campus is situated on approximately 430 acres on the northern boundary of Redstone Arsenal, and Marshall Space Flight Center. The Geospatial Training and Application Center (GTAC) was established in 2000 and is its newest operational unit.

The mission of GTAC is to be the International Hub for the use of Geospatial Technologies, which include the satellite or space-based technologies of: Global Positioning Systems (GPS), Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Remote Sensing and Communications. GTAC serves as the academic footprint of the USSRC as it provides a premier training environment for the spatial technologies that "bridge the gap" between research and product development and the end user of the technologies". GTAC provides a forum for the purpose of linking educational systems, the public, dedicated science centers, research centers, business, industry, and government so that they can work in collaboration to improve math, science, and technology literacy through eductation, training, and application.

GTAC functions as a portal and applications development center to bridge the gap between the researchers and developers and the pratical application of the technologies in our every day lives. The mission is to better educate the public and private sectors, inspiring them with the technical capabilities of these technologies. GTAC brings the industry leaders, subject matter experts, researchers, and the technical genuis of the geospatial community together in a common forum to solve today's challenges. GTAC's vender-neutral environment serves as a common ground for the expert and novice, leveraging state-of-the-art conference and lab facilities as an international center of excellence for geospatial information and application.

Since its inception in 2000, GTAC has worked closely with Federal agencies such as NASA, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Department of the Army and is uniquely positioned to assist governmental agencies across the State of Alabama with the expertise required to design, implement, and sustain geo information systems supporting local, county, and state governmental mapping initiatives.

GTAC can help governmental agencies within our state gain a basic, practical understanding of GIS concepts, technical issues, and applications. With that comes a better understanding of the wide variety of GIS software and hardware options that exist today. This in turn creates an appreciation for the significance of data issues and the importance of maintaining a data and applications focus on the technology. Governmental agencies also begin to recognize technical as well as management issues in GIS and then begin to plan, design, and implement GIS-based approaches to urban problem solving. GTAC helps to explain the advantages and limitations of GIS-based approaches in the context of appropriate and inappropriate uses of these systems. Governmental agencies gain practical experience using GIS software, hardware, methodologies and applications, and most significantly, provide coordinated oversight while working in the fiduciary interest of the State of Alabama.

A 1997 study for the USSRC funded by the National Science Foundation and conducted by Stanford Research Institute reported: "The world stands on the threshold of a spatial information revolution. Two components necessary for spatial technology to become pervasive in today's society are: an abundance of inexpensive technology products and a knowledgeable user community."

The convergence of technologies such as GPS, GIS, remote satellite imagery and the use of GIS assist communities in land use management and better manage and protect their infrastructure. Perhaps it is easiest to understand the advantages of leveraging these technologies by stating what can be accomplished.

Today we experience geospatial technologies in our everyday lives. Most are transparent to the user. Applications such as E911, in-car navigation, weather.com, and even the efficiency at which hot pizza arrives at our home are all made possible by geospatial technologies. We are beginning to see advances in location-based services that provide what we need, where we are, when we need it. Aerial and satellite imagery are becoming a more cost effective means of quickly gathering data over large areas and at a greater frequency than was possible in the past. The images of natural and man-made disasters are now a part of the nightly news and available at near real-time speed through the Internet. We are realizing the benefits of both inexpensive technology components and an abundance of data available through the World Wide Web. The convergence of affordable GPS data collection equipment and ubiquitous computing allow automated field-based operations such as maintenance, repairm rehabilitation, and planning.

As the geo information becomes more easily accessible and the expense associated with high-powered computers decreases, geospatial data will permeate the workflow of field crews and operations personnel alike. The impact of location-specific data is being felt in the workplace. On-time delivery systems, logistics, supply chain managers within the retail sector are reaping the benefits of location-specific information. Suppliers armed with demographic information of their customers and geospatial information are better equipped to provide better selection of goods in a more timely fashion, but most importantly in a cost effective manner.

Since 9/11, the effectiveness of Homeland Security initiatives have created a technology windfall that will be felt far into the next decade as vendors work to bring real solutions to this difficult challenge. Data gathered as a result of these types of initiatives will provide a repository of information about the spatial extent of our land. De-classifying data from Federal and other agencies will further populate geo-datasets well into the future. The repository will fuel new users for the data crossing over into the areas of business, retail, land use, and environmental stewardship. These and other initiatives have begun to supply local, state, and federal agencies with the funding needed and data to carry out large scale mapping activities which protect our nation's citizens and assets while setting new precedence for cooperation, data sharing, and communication among agencies.