The thirtieth Asian Conference on Remote Sensing (30ACRS2009) took place in Beijing from 18th to 23rd October 2009 at Beijing Conference Centre, organised by the Asian Association of Remote Sensing (AARS) and China National Committee on Remote Sensing (CNCRS), jointly hosted by the Institute of Remote Sensing Application CAS (IRSA), Centre for Earth Observation and Digital Earth CAS (CEODE), China Aero Geophysical Survey and Remote Sensing Centre for Land and Resources (AGRS), and the National Remote Sensing Centre of China (NRSCC).

Opening Addresses
The opening ceremony was held in the conference hall on 19th October, chaired by Academician Tong Qingxi. Prof. Gu Xingfa invited Prof. Zhao Zhongxian, vice-president of the China Association for Science and Technology, to announce 30ACRS2009 officially open, after which Prof. Xu Guanhua, former Minister for Science and Technology, and Xu Deming, Vice-minister of the Ministry of National land Resources, addressed conference. The meeting was also gratified to hear congratulatory speeches from ISPRS, IEEE and SPIE. Academician Tong Qingxi invited Prof. Suvit Vubulsresth to host the Boon's Medal Award, honouring twelve individuals for their significant contributions to ACRS.

Anniversary Celebrations
A ceremony was dedicated to celebration of the thirtieth anniversary of ACRS, with IRSA director Prof. Gu Xingfa and Prof. Kohei Cho taking the chair. Prof. Shunji Murai reviewed the development of ACRS, announcing awards for significant contribution made to 24 individuals.

Conference Agenda
Responding to the conference theme of ‘Asian Onward Space Age', 386 papers, 284 papers for oral sessions and 102 for poster sessions were received. More than seven hundred (246 international) world-renowned experts and participants from 28 countries and regions attended the event. Besides the Student Session on 18th October, there were seven invited speakers whose contributions greatly enhanced the opening and closing of conference. Each morning from 20th to 22nd October, keynote sessions focused on the Environment & Global Change, Geospatial Information Science and Technology, Remote Sensing & GIS for Human Health, Remote Sensing Science and Environmental Applications and Microwave Technology and Applications. A total of 43 oral and poster presentations were given. Sixteen students were granted a Best Paper award; three were named JSPRS Best Speakers (Technical session) and three were awarded JSPRS Top Best Paper (Student Session).

Trade Fair
30ACRS2009 attracted 28 Chinese and international exhibitors and three corporate magazines to join the conference. Thirty years of ACRS bears witness to great success and progress in Remote Sensing, in Asia as well as the rest of the world!