BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 11. As part of its cooperation with the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Kyrgyzstan, the Space Agency of Azerbaijan (Azercosmos) has provided satellite-based digital solutions to assess and prevent the risk of natural disasters, Trend reports.
According to the data from the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport of Azerbaijan, Azercosmos solutions helped prevent a natural disaster in Kyrgyzstan.
The high-precision Digital Elevation Model (DEM) provided by Azercosmos played a crucial role in preventing a potential disaster in the region, saving the lives of hundreds of people.
The DEM is a geographic information model displaying elevation data in digital format, used for accurately describing the structure and shape of the terrain. Through the analysis of satellite images and additional monitoring data, it was identified that a mountain lake in the Issyk-Kul area posed a threat of breaching. Without intervention, surrounding villages would have faced severe flooding. Based on the gathered data, Kyrgyzstan's authorities quickly organized the evacuation of residents from the risk zone. Just four days after the evacuation, the expected flood occurred, but thanks to timely actions, 500 lives were saved.
Kyrgyzstan has over 2,000 mountain lakes, with 320 of them posing significant threats of emergencies. The breach of these lakes, located in high-altitude areas, could have a wide-scale impact on Central Asia. The main cause of such natural disasters is the increased vulnerability of mountain lakes due to climate change. Rising temperatures accelerate glacial melting, which leads to critical water level increases in lakes.
To prevent similar disasters in the future, more detailed satellite monitoring of risk zones and enhanced security measures for mountain lakes are essential. Digital elevation models and satellite data enable accurate event forecasting, helping not only to save lives but also to optimize the costs of disaster recovery efforts.