On 21 May, a delegation led by Dr. Vanessa Lawrence, Director General and Chief Executive of Ordnance Survey, paid a visit to CEODE. Ordnance Survey is Great Britain's national mapping agency.

First, the guests watched videos on the Digital Earth Science Platform and visited the satellite ground control hall to see the operation and control system. They also visited the three international organizations hosted by CEODE: the International Centre on Space Technologies for Natural and Cultural Heritage under the Auspices of UNESCO (HIST), the International Society for Digital Earth (ISDE) and the International Programme Office for Integrated Research on Disaster Risk (IRDR).

After the tour, the delegation and representatives from CEODE held a discussion. CEODE Deputy Director LIU Jianbo warmly welcomed them and gave an introduction to CEODE’s status, operation of national scientific and technological infrastructures, and progress in science, research, and international cooperation. Lawrence briefly introduced the management operations of Ordnance Survey and the major scientific and research tasks. Both sides also discussed airborne remote sensing systems, remote sensing data reception and storage, and user services.

Lawrence is the first woman to head Great Britain's national mapping agency, and is also an internationally renowned expert in the field of geographical information systems. Also in attendance from Ordnance Survey were Peter Ter Haar, Director of Products, and Neil Ackroyd, Director of Data Collection and Management. They were joined by a representative from the National Geomatics Center of China.

Representatives from Ordnance Survey visit CEODE