Summit Set to Address ''Advancing the Sensor Web''.

WAYLAND, Mass. -- The third annual Emerging Technology Summit's (ETS III) theme is "Advancing the Sensor Web." The two day event is organized by the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC), the Geospatial Information & Technology Association (GITA) and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory SensorNET Program. The objectives of the Summit are to improve the understanding of sensor networks and to define requirements for enabling a standards-based, interoperable framework for accessing, processing, and tasking an ever increasing population of fixed and mobile sensors.

The event will be held April 14-15, 2005 at the Washington Hilton Hotel in Washington, DC. ETS III will address the discovery, access and exploitation of sensors from the simplest in situ devices such as water temperature and depth gauges in the nation's rivers, to mobile sensors large and small hosted on aircraft, on satellites in orbit, or in cars and telephones.

ETS III will emphasize the successes and critical challenges that must be addressed to assure that sensor assets and sensor information can be easily discovered, associated and applied based on geographic location. Leaders from government, industry and academia will discuss current successes and define the challenges for improved discovery, access, integration and application of sensor information for enhanced monitoring and decision-making.

Several high level keynotes are planned. Robert W. Corell of the American Meteorological Society & Kennedy School at Harvard and Jack Kelly, Director of NOAA's National Weather Service (invited), will speak on Sensors in Public Safety, Climate Change and Weather Forecasting and Warning. Also, Mr. David Godso, lead architect for the Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical Biological Defense Software Support Activity will speak about the role of sensors and interoperability in advancing the National Security Strategy. Other government and industry speakers will address technology trends and challenges in harnessing sensor assets. Details, the latest additions to the program and registration information can be found online at www.gita.org/events/ets/iii/.

For information about the conference organizers visit OGC at www.opengeospatial.org, GITA at www.gita.org, and Oak Ridge National Labs SensorNET at www.sensornet.gov.