Internet resources: High-resolution imagery of the Earth to go on the Web

Esri CIS (Geographic Information System), provider of geoinfrmation technologies, has announced it has signed a strategic contract with GeoEye, a leading source of geospatial information and insight.

The new agreement is aimed at considerable extension of data available at ArcGIS.com. Users of this resource will be now offered a wide scope of GeoEye’s high resolution IKONOS (earth observation satellite) archive imagery.

Esri will blend this highly accurate imagery with its current imagery data from multiple sensors to produce a global, static cache map layer. This imagery base layer will be displayed and served to Esri users via ArcGIS.com, an online system for working with geographic information through a range of GIS desktops, Web browsers and mobile devices. Esri will begin building this imagery base layer within the next few weeks and expects to complete it in early 2012. Esri and GeoEye are working together to make GeoEye’s imagery archive more accessible to Esri ArcGIS users. In addition, improved search and discovery of GeoEye’s content will provide Esri users with a fuller, richer user experience. This foundation marks the beginning of a new direction in the partnership, as it will bring new solutions to both ArcGIS and GeoEye imagery users. The two companies plan to announce joint offerings and other initiatives later in the year.