Cartography and Climate Change

In 2000, a visit by the WB-57 aircraft, a bomber modified by NASA to conduct high altitude research, ushered in a new era of cooperation between a number of Costa Rican institutions, including the National Center for High Technology (CeNAT),  and NASA. This resulted in the implementation of three missions by the WB-57F aircraft as a platform to study atmospheric and tropical phenomena, and others related to Costa Rica’s geography.

Thanks to several projects supported by CENAT, this cooperative effort has produced new photographs for the national cartography service -  the first time these have been updated in 53 years - with multi-spectrum and infrared images of 85% of the national territory. In addition, high-tech sensors and instruments were used to carry out research on climate change and natural phenomena, and a laboratory was established with cutting-edge technology for the analysis and distribution of photographs and information gathered during these missions.