The Chinese government donated the world's highest-resolution image database
of the Earth's surface to the United Nations (UN) on Tuesday.
The database of 30-meter-resolution images, independently developed by the
National Administration of Surveying, Mapping and Geoinformation (NASMG) from
2010 to 2014, will facilitate global natural resources monitoring, analysis of
global geographic changes and provide a basis for decision-making on sustainable
development.
The United States and the European Union have developed image databases of
the Earth's surface at 1,000-meter and 300-meter ratios respectively.
The image database will be held at the UN's New York headquarters. All UN
institutions, its member countries and international communities will have free
access to use it, according to the NASMG.