In these applications, an area of interest is monitored by continuously gathering and updating imagery. Imagery analysis can also be used to monitor inaccessible or prohibited areas where an event has yet to occur but the potential for conflict is high. This type of evidence gathering is helpful in corroborating NGO and eyewitness accounts of events on the ground and has been done in Burma, Zimbabwe, and elsewhere. Comparing images of the area before and after it was declared a CSZ revealed fresh bomb and shell craters and damage to rooftops. For example, in 2009 AAAS looked at imagery of the Civilian Safety Zone (CSZ) in Sri Lanka after government forces had defeated the Tamil Tigers. Satellite imagery analysis projects typically involve documenting the damage to an area after an event has occurred.
In addition, the decreasing cost of geospatial technologies and increasing availability of geospatial data have made high-resolution imagery analysis a viable research tool for human rights organizations. As the imaging capability of high-resolution satellites has developed over the years, so too has the power to analyze the impact of conflict on infrastructure and other features identifiable from imagery. Imagery is particularly useful for assessing the extent of violent conflict, forced displacement, and other human rights concerns in remote, inaccessible or otherwise tightly controlled areas of the world, such as Burma and Sri Lanka. High-resolution satellite imagery can be used for human rights-related documentation, monitoring, and advocacy efforts.
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