Skip to content

NPP systems delivered and Successfull installation of MEOS™ Polar system for INSA at Canary Island Space Sentre


NPP systems delivered

We have now completed the upgrade and delivery of 7 MEOS polar systems to customers in Europe and Asia to support NPP and also EOS, NOAA, FY3 and METOP.
NPP systems delivered

Kongsberg Spacetec has now completed the upgrade and delivery of 7 MEOS polar systems to customers in Europe and Asia to support NPP and also EOS, NOAA, FY3 and METOP.

This NPP picture of Norway, Sweden and Finland, February 29 2012 is made from VIIRS channels 5, 4 og 3 received by our NPP direct broadcast reference system in Tromsø.

Successfull installation of MEOS™ Polar system for INSA at Canary Island Space Sentre

Successful installation of MEOS™ Polar system including antenna to Ingenieria y Servicios Aeroespaciales SA – INSA at the Canary Islands Space Centre in Maspalomas, Gran Canaria.

This is a L/X band ground station which will be a part of EUMETSATs EARS network

The system is cabable of receiving and processing data from the meteorological satellites Metop, NOAA, FY-3 (L- and X- band simultaneously), NPP and in the future JPSS.

The MEOS™ Polar ground station system is Kongsberg Spacetec’s multi-mission, flexible and modular turnkey system for acquisition, archiving, processing, analysis and distribution of meteorological data.

INSA is 100% property of the National Institute for Aerospace Technique (INTA), a body of the Spanish Ministry of Defence.

For more information about the customer: INSA – Ingenieria y Servicios Aeroespaciales SA

Source

News about detail urban mapping in Sweden, mapping environmental impacts of hydro power in Laos or mapping of available solar energy for solar power applications…

Detailed Urban Mapping in Sweden (30 mar. 2012)

GRAS is mapping impervious surface areas in several cities throughout Sweden. The mapping is based on a variety of available input data such as aerial photos, GIS data and LiDAR data. The mapping is performed with a highly automated mapping solution developed by GRAS.

The output is shape files with impervious surfaces classified into various classes specified by the client. The mapping results is used as input in a swedish based research project about estimation of surface runoff coefficients for hydrological modelling.

More info at

Mapping environmental impacts of hydro power in Laos(15 mar. 2012)

GRAS has been selected as service provider under the procurement “Earth Observation (EO) based information services in support of the European Investment Bank” (EIB) projects. GRAS is supported by DHI and Earth Systems Lao for the project which is part of the “European Space Agency” (ESA) strategy to mainstream the use of EO-based services within the EIB financing and project operations. The aim of this service is to produce, deliver and assess the utility and benefits of EO information products and services in support of the “Nam Theun II” (NT2) Hydropower project in Lao PDR, which is being backed by the European Investment Bank (EIB) and other commercial lenders and international financial institutions. The service will deliver EO based forest cover and land use information for the NT2 project area with a particular focus on documenting (illegal) activities such as logging, settlements and agriculture in designated areas for forest protection and resettlement. In addition an EO based monitoring system of reservoir dynamics will be developed based on high-frequency medium resolution optical and radar (ASAR) data , and all information will be made available for the watershed management program which is embedded in the NT2 project.

More info

Mapping of available solar energy for solar power applications(25 feb. 2012)

As part of the DANIDA-funded “Projet de faisabilité des ressources de l’énergie renouvelables au Mali”-project, GRAS has performed a mapping of the solar resources as a sustainable energy source for Mali, West Africa. The project demonstrates how information derived from geostationary satellite imagery can be used to assess the temporal and spatial variability of the available solar energy at the surface.

The project uses data from the Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) satellites which are operated by EUMETSAT on behalf of ESA and the national weather services of the ESA member states. The SEVIRI-instrument onboard the MSG satellites provide coverage of the entire earth disk every 15 minutes in 11 spectral bands. This allows for continuous tracking of cloud cover and atmospheric attenuation on a continental basis. The MSG based Down-welling Surface Shortwave Radiation was adjusted to local conditions using in-situ data acquired from a number of ground stations distributed throughout central Mali. A following validation exercise proved the ability of accurate mapping of the solar potential at both high temporal and spatial resolution on national scale using geostationary satellite data.

The outputs of the project are monthly and yearly assessments of the solar energy available at the surface for a given time frame in a high spatial resolution. The information was delivered in the form of maps showing the spatial distribution of the available energy as shown in the examples below for a three year period between July 2008 and June 2011.
The project has been performed in cooperation with the CNESOLER (Centre National d’Energie Solaire & des Energies Renouvelables – Malian National Centre for Solar & Renewable Energy) and UNEP Risø Centre.

More Info

(03/04/2012) Spain has taken part in NATO’s Technical Interoperability Experiment for 2012 (TIE12) with the GMV-developed Mobile ISTAR Operating system (called SEISMO after its Spanish initials: Sistema de Explotación ISTAR Móvil).

The system came through all the technical and operational interoperability tests with flying colours. It outperformed all the other participating operating systems, coming top with a 100% success rate.

The SEISMO program, funded by the Spanish Defense Ministry form’s part of Spain’s participation in the multinational cooperation program MAJIIC2 (Multi-Intelligence All-Source Joint Intelligence Surveillance And Reconnaissance Interoperability Coalition). This program, a multinational effort involving nine NATO members plus NC3A, aims to enforce the standards and capabilities that facilitate sharing of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) products and maximize the use of surveillance and reconnaissance resources. It also sets out to improve situational awareness through collaborative employment and use of interoperable ISR sensor and exploitation capabilities. The program agreements include the conducting of experiments and exercises to develop capabilities, both technical and operational, and progressively improve and fine-tune the systems on the basis of the lessons learnt.

The exercise was held from 5 to 23 March 2012. The NATO Consultation, Command and Control Agency (NC3A), based in the Hague, Netherlands, was the venue for most of the exercises, with a WAN connection with Langley Air Force Base (Virginia, USA). The participating nations were France, Germany, Holland, Norway, Spain, the UK and US.

The exercise was a resounding success in terms of inter-country collaboration and particularly the level of technical and operational capabilities demonstrated by the SEISMO system.

Source

2012-03 – Project win – Middenschalig wegenbestand
2012-03 – Partner of the Year Award 2011
2012-03 – FME Certified Trainer
2012-02 – Uitbreiding aanbod GIM GIS Training Centre
2012-02 – Salon des mandataires
2012-02 – Project win – Noise mapping
2012-02 – Project win – GIM ASTRID Analysis
2012-02 – Project win – Digital exchange platform
2012-02 – Multimodaal Vlaams Brabant

Feb 2012

TerraExplorer Viewer
With TerraExplorer Viewer, users can navigate and analyze high resolution 3D world environments created by fusing aerial and satellite photography, terrain elevation data and other 2D and 3D information layers.

  • View all terrain data and terrain overlays in 3D with 6 degrees of movement
  • Create and share screenshots, movies and dynamic presentations
  • Add and edit points, lines and polygons
  • Add kml/kmz files and fly files
  • Measure and analyze your 3D terrain (slopes, flows, transects, contours, line of sight, …)
  • Analyze shadows
  • Integrate TerraExplorer into your own application or website
  • Let people based on different locations collaborate on the same dynamic 3D view

TerraExplorer Plus
With TerraExplorer Plus, users can import raster and feature layers and convert them directly in 3D and perform advanced editing functionality and run Tools and Extensions that utilize the comprehensive TerraExplorer Pro API.

  • Includes all TerraExplorer Viewer functions
  • Availability of drawing tools
  • Import geo-referenced images, elevation data and vector layers
  • Link up with spatial database formats and OGC web services
  • Easily add 2D, 3D, dynamic and terrain objects and link them to applicable time ranges
  • Set the appearance of the environment in the 3D Window: fog, sky, clouds & water effects

TerraExplorer Pro
Adds publishing capability, editing tools for all supported objects and feature layer advanced operations.

  • Includes all TerraExplorer Plus functions
  • Advanced drawing tools (pipes, power lines, …)
  • Modify terrain
  • Integrate video on terrain or on billboard
  • Create and edit vector layers or upload geographic data to a server using Web Feature Services (WFS-t)

Download the TerraExplorer Pro data sheet

Compare versions
TerraExplorer contains many functions. Some features are only available in TerraExplorer Plus or TerraExplorer Pro.

Download the comparison table

News about: … forecast and observation of general and street-level conditions in European cities / earth observation for improved governance of informal mining / contract for GIZ-SADC REDD Project on development of an Integrated Monitoring System …etc

Forecasts and observation of general and street-level conditions in European cities (21.02.2012)

Air quality information and forecasts, as well as warnings about the levels of pollutants such as nitrogen dioxides, ozone and particulate matter, will soon be made available in near real time.

Read More…

GAF applies earth observation for improved governance of informal mining (17.02.2012)

GAF AG, in a team together with DLR and IES, is carrying out a contract to use optical and radar remote sensing sensors and interpretation techniques to locate, map and monitor small-scale and artisanal mining (ASM) operations. In many countries, information about ASM is largely incomplete and, as a consequence, ASM activities remain informal and outside of governmental supervision and regulation.

Read More…

GAF awarded contract for GIZ-SADC REDD Project: Development of an Integrated Monitoring System (16.02.2012)

GAF AG in a partnership with Deutsche Forst Service (DFS) has been awarded by GIZ, a newly conceptualised REDD Project for the southern African region. The counterpart is the Southern African…

Read More…

GAF contracted to implement a significant part of GMES Initial Operations (GIO) Land Monitoring Services (06.02.2012)

The European Environment Agency (EEA) has contracted GAF AG to map high-resolution Forest and Impervious Area characteristics for two lots in West-, Central- and South-Eastern Europe in the framework of the GMES Initial Operations (GIO) Land Monitoring Services.

Read More…

GAF capacity building for the development of the Afghan mining sector (02.02.2012)

GAF has established in Kabul a training centre and an attached demonstration mine to support the training of mines inspectors of the Ministry of Mines in Afghanistan. The newly constructed mock-underground mine sets the realistic stage to train and exercise international best practice. A one-year curriculum for mining inspectors has been developed covering theoretical and practical training for a full suite of topics.

Read More…

13 April 2012, Geneva, Switzerland – The Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System (GDACS) reached another milestone today as the second generation of its Satellite Mapping Coordination System (SMCS) was officially launched. GDACS is a cooperation framework for natural disaster alerts operating under the umbrella of the United Nations.

It includes disaster managers and disaster information systems worldwide and aims at coordination information and filling gaps in the first phases after a major disaster. To do this, GDACS provides real-time access to web-based disaster information systems and useful coordination tools. The Satellite Mapping Coordination System, or SMCS, of GDACS is a tool for GIS-experts working with satellite imagery for specific events. It allows experts to see which images are collected where and which entity is working on what type of analysis. This facilitates a horizontal coordination links as opposed to time consuming top-down models and effectively reduces duplication of efforts and the pushing of low value maps to the use community. In addition to being an operational coordination tool for satellite image analysis professionals, SMCS is also a metadata archive for past events, and a discussion forum.

Full article

Other news

UNOSAT/Esri Conference on GIS gathers over 100 organizations in Geneva

3-4 April 2012, Geneva, Switzerland – More than 200 attendees representing over 100 entities from the United Nations, academic fields, nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector participated in the “GIS for the United Nations and the International Community” conference held in on 3-4 April the World Meteorological Organization headquarters in Geneva. The conference opened with a keynote from Ambassador Betty E. King, permanent representative of the United States to the United Nations Office in Geneva. Ambassador King, who was welcomed on the podium by UNOSAT Manager Francesco Pisano, spoke on the role of technology and information as a transformative tool empowering local actors to address global challenges and development opportunities. “On behalf of the US government and President Obama, I applaud your use of technology in your work,” stated Ambassador King. “The world’s current resources are insufficient to address all the major global development and humanitarian crises that we face. Through the use of science and technology, including innovative uses of GIS applications, we can become more effective and efficient in this endeavour and stretch the power of limited resources.”

Full article

UN Chief IT Officer visits UNOSAT

23 March 2012, Geneva, Switzerland – United Nations Assistant Secretary-General Choi Soon-hong visited the UNOSAT operational site at CERN and held discussions with UNOSAT Manager Francesco Pisano and his staff on Friday 23 March as part of his visit to several Geneva-based UN offices and agencies. Dr Choi is the UN Chief IT Officer, in charge of all matters relating to the use of information and communications technology at the UN Secretariat. In this capacity, he leads the Office of Information and Communications Technology of the UN Secretariat, which provides enterprise-wide oversight of ICT programmes, budgets and decision-making – to ensure alignment with the Secretariat’s overall ICT strategy, in support of the mission of the United Nations. The visit followed up in a series of high level contacts and technical exchanges between OICT and UNOSAT since 2010.

Full article

Master Students leave UNOSAT with GIS tools for disaster management

21 March 2012, Geneva, Switzerland – The Master in Disaster Management, created by the Universities of Copenhagen and Lund (Sweden), has the objective to provide national and international aid workers, government officials and other professionals interested in any or all parts of disaster management with a solid holistic interdisciplinary background so that they can respect and understand the complex context of acting and working before, during and after a disaster. To join, students must possess at least two years of professional working experience. UNOSAT has elaborated the contents of its GIS course into an intensive set of modules tailored to fit the requirements of this particular audience. Geo Information in Disaster Situations is based on a successful formula combining formal training and knowledge transfer directly from UNOSAT experts and analysts.

Full article

Check out UNOSAT’s work through these means as well:
iPad app: itunes.apple.com/us/app/unosat/id495667261?mt=8%20
RSS latest maps
UNOSAT Podcasts
Twitter
UNITAR Operational Satellite Applications Programme (UNOSAT)
United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR)
Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Tel. +41 22 767 4020 / Mobile: +41 76 487 4998 (UNOSAT hotline)
Email: unosat@unitar.org / Website: www.unitar.org/unosat

BC is providing the transformation and allocation of monitoring data from Wadden Sea National Park of Hamburg (Department of Urban Development of Hamburg) for the Trilateral Monitoring and Assessment Program (TMAP).

This data will be made available to the public through the Common Wadden Sea Secretariat (CWSS), Wilhelmshaven, Germany.

Source

BMT ARGOSS, a subsidiary of BMT Group, the leading international maritime design, environmental and engineering consultancy, has recently been awarded a number of projects in Southeast Asia including metocean studies for Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd and its offshore development, east of Sabah in Malaysia.

As well as operating regional wind and wave models, BMT ARGOSS can generate and provide localised hindcast data sets and has recently worked closely with sister company, BMT WBM to undertake innovative, nested hydrodynamicMetOcean data modelling in the Makassar Strait, Indonesia. Coupled with its recent development in tropical storm modelling, BMT ARGOSS is providing the necessary support within the engineering design, planning and installation phases of offshore production facilities including jacket and floating structures, as well as the associated pipelines back to shore.

Robin Stephens, Manager of the Metocean Group at BMT ARGOSS explains: “As oil and gas companies look towards much deeper water provinces such as the Makassar Strait and areas close to Vietnam for offshore production, metocean studies become even more important due to the harsher environmental conditions. Our customers need to be able to understand and quantify the conditions that need to be withstood and we can guide them through this process.”

Stephens continues: “It’s all about reducing the uncertainty in the basis of design – we’re working in a very erratic environment and we need to inform the design engineers of pragmatic values for extreme loadings and that’s a balance between economy and safety.”

Source


ABOUT ESA VAE

Value Added Element (VAE) is a component of ESA’s Earth Observation Envelope Programme, Mr. Coulson, could you briefly explain your daily activities at the VAE office in ESA? What exactly is the role of your team? And how is the liaison with other programmes and divisions?

Two words come immediately to mind to describe daily life in the office; busy and hectic ! We are a team of 6, but at any one time we are handling 60+ small, very diverse activities in the VAE program, as well as finishing a few much larger activities in the GMES Services Element program (eg. Polar & Sea ice, Maritime Security, Coastal water quality, Land motion). The approach we take is pro-active; we work side-by-side with industry service providers to make sure that the users involved are getting the very best out of what European industry and European EO missions are capable of delivering, and that it is in line with their requirements. Each member of the VAE team has developed specialist technical expertise in specific areas of EO applications and services over the last decade, and they can bring that practical experience of working with a wide range of users to the benefit of new activities right at the start. We are operating at the ‘front-end’ of the EO applications development process. We are talking to user communities (both public and private sector) who need information solutions in order to carry out their daily activities, and we need to match up these requirements with what we know EO can deliver in terms of well-validated services where the performances, limitations and constraints are known and we are on solid ground. We have two other teams in ESRIN working further ‘down the line’ in the development process; one group working with 1000+ scientists in developing new algorithms and techniques, and another group building on this work developing new applications in support of international environmental treaties and conventions. We are in constant cooperation with these colleagues, both to know the technical status of what’s cooking, and to feed-back new ideas from users of what needs developing. In addition, we work with our colleagues in ESTEC who are running the Integrated Application Promotion (IAP, that makes use EO, Navigation and Telecommunications technologies) to ensure that their activities take full benefit of what has been done in EO before. Add on top of all this the frequent events where ESA participates or organises to share its experiences and develop this domain, and you can appreciate why I began with those two words; busy and hectic!

EOWORLD

Under the Eoworld title, ESA is committed to sustainable development initiatives in developing countries: what concrete progress in market development can industry expect? How ESA did the first approach to International Financial Institutions? How were the first links within the World Bank? Why the interest?

During the Spring 2011 EOmag issue, EARSC have learnt from Mr Anthony Bigio from the Sustainable Development Network at the World Bank that you are running a common project called “eoworld”, could you explain further the initiative?

eoWorld is a collaboration between World Bank and the European Space Agency to demonstrate the benefits that EO information can bring to Bank activities. We think there is a manifest need for reliable up-to-date and historical geospatial information in the planning, implementation, monitoring and completion phases of Bank investment projects. EO information can meet some (not all) of this need in a globally consistent manner.

With this in mind, eoWorld was started ‘bottom-up’ by focussing on 15 actual on-going Bank projects, and covering a wide range of EO information services in the land, marine and urban risk sectors, in different areas around the World. The Bank project teams specified what types of information were needed, and ESA then supported European providers (selected via open competition) to produce and deliver EO information services against these requirements. A first progress report has been published jointly by the World Bank and ESA (see Fig. 1). There has already been a significant investment in time and effort form the Bank in setting this initiative up. This has been led by Finance, Economics and Urban Development (FEU), both within their department but also across other departments of Sustainable Development Network (SDN). There is a huge interest in this both within the Bank and within the EO service industry. The attraction for the Bank is that ESA can provide independent technical guidance and oversight for non-experts to better understand and access the highly-specialised EO service sector. The attraction for industry is that ESA can facilitate access into a large organisation that would be otherwise be extremely difficult for small specialised companies. I think this is a good example of ESA opening new opportunity for both of these communities. fig.1.eoWorld Progress Report

Which was the selection procedure to decide on the interest of a project among the sustainable development projects? How is today the status of these projects? How do you envisage future activities?

We are now finalising these first 15 projects. The EO services have been delivered and benefits are currently being assessed by the Bank and local users. The Bank took the decision to hold a special session on the eoWorld initiative and first results during SDN Forum held during February in Washington DC. This involved some of Bank teams (enthusiastically) informing their colleagues of what impact using EO information had in their projects. The event was chaired with the high-level commitment of the SDN-FEU Director, Zoubida Allaoua, and the ESA EO Director, Volker Liebig (see Figure 2).


fig.2. Opening Panel session ‘Earth Observation for Development’ Feb 29th World Bank Washington DC (center : Volker Liebig, ESA Director of EO Programmes, Zoubida Allaoua World Bank Director of Finance, Economics and Urban Development)

You can see more about this on the Bank web site dedicated to EO (www.worldbank.org/earthobservation). But the ‘acid test’ is what happens after the project completes? Here we are very pleased to say that in the majority of cases, the Bank wants more of what has been delivered, and they are actively pursuing this under their own resources. We could not have hoped for a better result. Furthermore, this has raised sufficient interest to start discussions on a longer-term, more strategic collaboration on EO (the next phase of eoWorld). The idea is to look at priority areas for the Bank, and then map out a 3-5 year plan of cooperative action where, together with industry, ESA can demonstrate the full potential of EO information on a larger scale. First discussions on these priority areas include (but are not limited to) : oceans, forestry, disaster risk reduction, urban, and fragile states. Over the next few months, ESA will interact further with the Bank to finalise what could be done in the longer term. We hope to be in a position to start this more strategic collaboration by the end of this year. I have to say that the World Bank is leading the way forward in the use of EO information for development investments, but the opportunity doesn’t stop there. We have just started a very similar initiative with the European Investment Bank in Luxembourg (supporting 10 projects), and are in first discussions with European Bank of Reconstruction and Development in London, and the International Finance Corporation in Washington. As the momentum builds over the next few years, this could and should turn into a significant development opportunity for the European EO service industry (but first, let’s demonstrate the benefit!).

OGEO

The goal of the OGEO group is to enable more and better business between the Oil &Gas industry and Earth Observation services industries how were the first steps of this initiative?How were established the goals for 2011 (Ogeo portal, Joint project industry and follow up workshop in Dec 2011)… and how ESA will measure the success of the OGEO group?How do you see the OGEO group developing and what can EARSC be doing more to help this?

The Oil & Gas industry is no stranger to EO. They have been using it for at least 20 years and go through phases of in-sourcing and out-sourcing this technology. Within my team, we have had several activities with individual companies to explore EO services, both in Oil & Gas and Renewable Energy. A good example was with Shell Canada to use high-resolution land cover mapping in support of land reclamation and sustainable development of the Athabasca Oil Sands (see Figure 3).

fig.3.Land Use Change 2005/2006, Athabsca Oil Sands Development (Jack Pine), based on SPOT-5 data

This made it into the company’s annual sustainable development report (see Figure 4) and led to a sustainable follow-on business in EO service provision. A few years ago, we decided that, in order to gain momentum in this sector we had to go beyond individual projects with individual companies and open up a dialogue with the complete industry sector. So we pooled all our results and organised a workshop attended by 40 companies in 2010 to figure out what could be done to grow adoption of EO information in more Oil & Gas companies (see Figure 5). That led to the set-up of OGEO – the Oil & Gas Earth Observation working group, including Shell, Exxon, BP, Total and Woodside – and to the establishment of an EO portal for the industry to better exchange information needs and EO capabilities. This initiative took a significant step forward in late 2011, when the OGEO members decided to formalise the group within the framework of OGP (the association of Oil & Gas Producers).


fig.4.Shell Sustainable Development Report (2006)
fig.5. ESA Oil & Gas Workshop Report 2010

We are now finalising the terms of reference and cooperation with both ESA and EARSC. A first task will be to provide guidance to the OGP on how EO could help in a new Joint Industry Project (JIP) on oil spill best practices, currently being defined in response to last year’s Deep Water Horizon incident in the Gulf of Mexico. This all may sound very bureaucratic, but it has put in place a formal mechanism for two industry sectors (Oil & Gas, EO services) to cooperate. We will be looking to further support this as the basis for long-term expansion in activity between the two communities. Again, this is something that is very difficult for individual EO service companies to do, and an example of how ESA can support the EO sector. As a final word, we are currently working with the Re/Insurance industry to start a similar initiative to this.

COOPERATION & PARTNERSHIP WITH EO INDUSTRY

What is your view on the future partnership between ESA and EARSC to foster the growth and development of the industry? How do you see these cooperation in the years to come?
 
EARSC is THE single trade body for the EO services sector at European level, and as such, the natural partner with which the ESA EO industry section should be working with. I think that in the last few years, EARSC has become more established and more effective, especially since the appointment of a permanent Secretary General, Geoff Sawyer. The collaboration between ESA and EARSC is closer, more interactive, and more productive. EARSC have been fully involved in both eoWorld and in OGEO, making valuable contributions and representing industry as a whole. I expect this cooperation to grow and develop even stronger over the next years (we have a lot to work together on!).

FUTURE

At the end of the interview, here is the opportunity for your final thoughts on your vision for the future tasks ahead for VAE-ESA and EARSC? In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges the commercial earth observation industry is facing in the next 3 years? Industry has recognised the importance of the value added programme as one of the major tools supporting the development of EO applications and services. In the new phase which is coming from 2013, which major issue you have in mind? Do you have overall recommendations on the future development of the geo-information service sector, and would like to ask to give some hopefully positive messages to the members of EARSC.

The single biggest challenge is to move the provision of EO information services on to a sustainable basis that the industry can develop by itself in the longer-term. The biggest users of this type of information are (and are likely to remain) Public sector : Government departments, organisations and agencies. Here, the joint EU-ESA initiative of Global Monitoring of the Environment and Security (GMES) should be the turning point. This should move EO from a science-driven R&D technology, to a source of data for operational monitoring of all aspects of the Earth’s environment (Land, Atmosphere, Oceans, Cryosphere). The Sentinels will be ‘data-monsters’, producing more data in 5 months than Envisat has produced in 5 years (even with 10 instruments). Sentinel-2 with A and B units operating together will give global coverage of the Earth’s land surface at 10m resolution every 5 days. This represents a phase-change for EO, but the raw materials (data) have to be easily and readily accessible, which is why a free and open data policy is crucial.

However, I don’t see any ‘killer app’ or overnight miracles. This is a process that took at least 25 years in Meteorology, and it will take time with EO for the environment. Nevertheless, GMES represents a tremendous opportunity for EO and the EO services industry. The work that we are doing together now with the Development Banks, the Oil & Gas and the Re/Insurance industries should be preparing the ground for the EO services industry to further exploit and expand these sectors with GMES in the near future. But where will the business opportunities come from? As a last remark, I would like draw attention to a simple statistic : in the last decade 6 out of the 10 fastest growing economies were in Africa, and this is predicted to rise to 7 out of 10 in the next 5 years (see Figure 6). The implications are that European companies will need to develop capabilities, contacts, offices and staff in these fast-growing countries outside of Europe. So, I look forward to continue to working with EARSC and its African affiliates in the near future !

fig.6. The World’s fastest growing economies in 2011 (source: Economist)

Dr. Stephen Coulson, head of the industry section in ESA’s directorate of Earth Observation Programs in ESRIN.
Stephen Coulson has over 25 years experience in the field of Earth Observation and its applications, the last 20 of which have been with the European Space Agency. Since 2000, he has been managing an ESA program to support the development of the European EO services industry and is head of the Industry section in the Directorate of Earth Observation Programs in ESRIN (Frascati, Italy). He has a degree in physics from University of Durham (UK) and a Ph.D in theoretical physics from the University of Southampton (UK).

Stephen Coulson
Head of Industry Section
Directorate of EO Programmes
ESA/ESRIN, Frascati Italy
voice :+ 39 06 94180556
mail :stephen.coulson@esa.int

Eomag!29_Interview Dr. Stephen Coulson Hesad ESA Industry Section EO programmes ESRIN.pdf