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The DigitalGlobe Foundation provides grants for Researchers (who are AARSE members) in the form of imagery, basemap, elevation suite and/or Maps API.

The grant can also include DigitalGlobe’s 50cm mosaic +Vivid as an option for AARSE members. More information on the Foundation is available at: http://digitalglobefoundation.org/ while applicants can access more detailed information on the grants application process and form at: http://digitalglobefoundation.org/application-process.

For further information, please contact Rhiannan Price at Rhiannan.Price@digitalglobe.com

Summary report and reference materials from the Copernicus Value Chain workshop, 26-27 April 2016, are now available online and EARSC contributions


EARSC at Copernicus Value Chain Workshop

  • You will find bellow links to EARSC representatives’ presentations delivered during the two-day workshop at the following link
  • In addition, our Secretary General, Geoff Sawyer has written a blog on his perception of the workshop that you may find at this link.

Interviews from the workshop ©EC

The main focus of the Copernicus Value Chain Workshop was to develop a clearer view of the Copernicus ecosystem so as to properly identify the barriers to entry and key enablers for market uptake. The meeting gathered a mix of representatives from the Copernicus ecosystem, actors from the ICT industry and potential end users.

IT and EO players discussed the improvement of the Copernicus data access and EU institutions acknowledge the role of the private sector in this respect. The market uptake will not happen without private sector involvement and the need for complementarity and clear boundaries between public and industrial initiatives has been reasserted.

An interview with Andreas Veispak, Head of Unit – Space Data for Societal Challenges and Growth at the European Commission filmed during the Workshop is avilable below

Thibaud Delourme, Policy Officer at DG Grow explaining the context of the workshop and the challenges the Space Data for Societal Challenges and Growth Unit is confronted to.

Chetan Pradhan, CGI, EARSC Vice chairman exposing the industrial perspective.

Download the workshop report

An array of Earth Observation (EO) satellites, including the Sentinels involved in Europe’s Copernicus program, collect untold amounts of data as they circle our planet.


This high-resolution imagery and further information on climates and environments present tremendous potential in overcoming some of the biggest challenges of our time. Thanks to new developments in big data, cloud computing, and other areas, commercial products—and mobile apps in particular—are growing more and more proficient at handling huge quantities of information.

This is where the European Space Agency’s Space App Camp comes in: For the fifth time, this event is inviting programmers to develop creative and innovative apps that make EO data accessible to a wide audience. Professional app developers from all over Europe are welcome to apply until July 22, 2016, at app-camp.eu. Based on the applications received, 20 of them will then be invited to participate in the free Space App Camp at ESA’s ESRIN facility in Frascati (near Rome), Italy, from September 12 to 19, 2016. The selection criteria will include the applicants’ previous programming work. Travel and accommodation will be covered by the event’s organizers.

The Space App Camp is more than just another developer competition. In fact, its main goal is to familiarize the participants with the many ways satellite data can be used in mobile apps. Those who attend will be tasked with devising innovative apps and feasible business models in one of five subject areas: agriculture; environmental protection; smart cities; transport and logistics; or lifestyle, tourism, and health. The event will also be an excellent opportunity to make interesting contacts from all across Europe while gaining insights into how ESA operates.

At the most recent Space App Camp in the autumn of 2015, four students from Austria, Germany, Greece, and Spain came up with the idea for GAIA, an app designed to predict plant and crop damage based on EO data. GAIA covers all of the relevant measurement data collected by the Sentinels, other satellites, and in-situ sensors in order to monitor specific fields of interest for potential losses. The app enables farmers to identify risks early on and obtain crop yield predictions. They also benefit from precise information on the condition of their fields, which in turn facilitates the efficient use of water, fertilizer, and other resources. Meanwhile, GAIA is capable of detecting certain diseases immediately (or even before their onset) by using temperature, soil and air moisture levels, and other parameters to calculate corresponding risk.

Just recently, a team comprised of Lukas Böhler, Pascal Weinberger, and John Zachilashas founded the company GAIA Solutions Ltd. in Great Britain. They have also entered into a partnership with the Health and Environmental Management Society (HEMS) of Nepal in order to make use of the real-world data it has gathered on training its machine-learning algorithms. GAIA has found partners to help it advance its software and hardware, as well.

Anwendungszentrum GmbH Oberpfaffenhofen (AZO) has been organizing the Space App Camps on behalf of the European Space Agency since 2012. By leveraging its extensive experience as a specialist in building and maintaining global innovation networks and organising related competitions, AZO supports product innovations and the creation of new companies, particularly in the field of commercial aerospace applications.

space-of-innovation.com

The UK arm of Airbus Defence and Space UK has won the contract to build ESA’s Biomass satellite


ESA, Airbus Defence and Space UK have signed a €229 million contract to build a satellite that will provide global maps of how much carbon is stored in the world’s forests and how this stock is changing over time. The Earth Explorer Biomass satellite is part of the Living Planet programme, an initiative designed to develop new and better instruments for observing Earth. Previous missions have included the GOCE gravity satellite, along with SMOS-ice, a campaign designed to use passive microwave radiometry in L-band to verify sea-ice forecasts and satellite-derived ice products.

Due for launch in 2021, the satellite will also utilise an active imaging technology that operates in the microwave portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, but this time it will use a P-band synthetic aperture radar to deliver accurate maps of temperate, tropical and boreal forest biomass.

The technology uses short pulses of emitted microwave energy to record the reflection from a given area on the ground. When it comes to mapping forest vegetation, the wavelength of the RADAR system will determine whether the synthetic aperture RADAR (SAR) backscatter is dominated by surface scattering or volume scattering.

While worldwide forest type and forest cover can be detected by today’s satellites, obtaining the global mass of trees is not possible by current ground measurement techniques. Biomass will therefore take the information to a different level by effectively ‘weighing’ the worlds forests over a 5 year period. Over this time, the satellite will witness at least eight growth cycles in the forest population thereby improving our understanding of the carbon cycle.

“Biomass is another one of those missions reaching the frontiers, technically speaking,” noted Volker Liebig, Director of ESA’s Earth Observation Programmes at the contract signing in Stevenage, UK. “Just like our other Earth Explorers, it is a first. It will be the first P-band radar instrument in space delivering information on the actual carbon mass in Earth’s forests, information that is fundamental for a better understanding of the carbon cycle and global biomass.”

The radar will provide all-weather imaging from its near-polar, Sun-synchronous orbit as it flies at an altitude of 660 km. It will measure biomass at a resolution of 200 m and deforestation at 50 m to analyse how much carbon dioxide is being absorbed by the world’s forests and to provide a better insight into rates of habitat loss and the possible subsequent effect this may have on biodiversity in the forest environment.

The satellite is also equipped with an experimental ‘tomographic’ phase, that can provide a 3D view of the forests as it maps the topography of forest floors. Along with other opportunities such as mapping the subsurface geology in deserts and movements of ice sheets, the data will support REDD+, a UN climate change initiative aimed at reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.

Source

A Practical Guide for the use of Earth Observation DataA Practical Guide for the use of Earth Observation Data

Water contributes to all aspects of economic and social development. Especially in developing countries, water supply, sanitation, and a healthy environment form the basis of successful poverty reduction and shared-growth strategies. The use of remote sensing (RS) for operational purposes in hydrology and water resources, while not new, is a fast-growing field.

Earth Observation for Water Resources Management aims to shed light on the strengths and limitations of remote sensing in order to help specialists to provide decision makers with fast and reliable information.

This report:

  • describes some of the key global water related challenges and how the World Bank has been making use of remote sensing for water resource-related activities
  • includes a wealth of detailed technical information on existing sensor systems and data products (with examples)
  • provides practical guidelines and information about whether remote sensing may be useful for a given problem, and if so, which data sources would be most suitable and
  • offers an extensive literature review of studies evaluating the reliability of remote sensing.

This report also provides a guide to Water Resource Management professionals considering the use of Earth observation. Essential questions are provided that must be answered to help to navigate and evaluate the abundance of earth observation-based options and data products, including the likely validity of water resource variables estimated though Earth observation. The focus is on appropriate questions to ask once it has been concluded that exploring earth observation options for the Water Resource Management problem at hand is worthwhile.

Access eBook

Source

BlackSky has plans for a 60-satellite imaging constellation that will partner with the UN Institute For Training and Research (UNITAR).

BlackSky, a satellite-imaging company, announces it has established an official partnership with the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR). UNITAR, created in 1965, is an autonomous body within the United Nations that was formed to develop capacities to enhance global decision-making and support country-level action for shaping a better future.

“With BlackSky’s constellation, we not only have access to more information, but we also have access to it much faster than ever before,” said Nikhil Seth, United Nations Assistant Secretary-General, and Executive Director of UNITAR. “Our vision as an organization is to live in a world in which knowledge-empowered people can achieve results to overcome global challenges, and BlackSky’s service enables us to do this better.”

BlackSky officially announced its commercial entry into satellite imagery in June 2015, with initial operating capability in 2017 and plans for a 60-satellite constellation in the coming years. This will enable the company to provide cost-effective, high-resolution, rapid-revisit satellite imaging services, capturing all of the Earth’s populated area.

Through BlackSky’s revolutionary constellation, UNITAR and BlackSky will work in tandem to explore how imaging can be applied to humanitarian relief, human security, climate change adaptation, sustainable water management, territorial management, high priority peace-keeping missions, maritime monitoring of illegal activity, and more.

BlackSky Executive Vice President and General Manager, Rakesh Narasimhan, stated, “BlackSky is the first satellite imaging company of its kind to jointly explore new ways of leveraging the information collected from our satellite images to help achieve UNITAR’s many missions. This partnership is the first step in establishing a long standing relationship with UNITAR with a commitment to positively impact our joint customers.”

Source

The Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining in Malawi is establishing a Geological Data Management Information System (GDMIS). GAF has been awarded a contract to design and implement the system at the Geological Survey Department (GSD) in Zomba.

Access to geological information is essential for every government, in order to assess the country’s mineral potential. It is also a cornerstone for attracting new investors to the country’s mining sector. Straightforward and comprehensive access to geological and mineral information is a key element in promoting and developing the mineral resources sector in Malawi.

To increase the capacities of the Geological Survey Department, the Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining has contracted the German company GAF to design and implement a modern, GIS-based Geological Data Management Information System (GDMIS).

The core objective of the assignment comprises the development of a GIS-based central data repository, a management cockpit and a data catalogue accessible through the internet. The system will thus support the GSD in the management, valorisation, safe storage and dissemination of geoscientific data for the entire country.

In practical terms, the project components include:

  • Assessment of capacities and user requirements at the Geological Survey Department;
  • Identification and involvement of relevant stakeholders and related programmes;
  • Inventory of existing geoscientific and mine operation data;
  • Organisation and supervision of the scanning and digitising of existing analogue geological, geochemical, geophysical, and geo-hazard data;
  • Data quality control and database integration;
  • System and database design, compilation, and implementation;
  • Software development, prototyping and training.

The contract has a duration of twelve months and is part of the “Mining Governance and Growth Support Project (MGGSP)”, which is supported by the World Bank and the European Union. The GDMIS in Malawi will be a customized version of GAF’s GeMinIS platform. With more than a decade of experience in the development and implementation of GIS-based geological and mineral information systems, GAF developed the GeMinIS platform to support mineral and natural resource management.

About GeMinIS

The Geological and Mineral Information System (GeMinIS) is GAF’s comprehensive software solution tailored to the specific needs of the mineral governance and natural resources management domains. The GeMinIS is designed and programmed to manage, store, visualise, process and publish data and various types of report from heterogeneous range of sources. This central repository can support access to, and interpretation and use of geological and mineral information across a country. It is based on FOSS (free and open-source software) and thus does not involve a vendor lock-in.

About GAF

GAF is a leading provider of geo-solutions with an international reputation for the skilled provision of data, products and services in the fields of geo-information, spatial IT and consulting for private and public clients. Over the past 30 years, the company has been active in more than 1000 projects in over 100 countries throughout Europe, Africa, Latin America and Asia. The company is part of the Telespazio Group, which belongs to Finmeccanica and Thales, two European technology leaders.

Source

Esri enhanced its ArcGIS technology to simplify the use of free global imagery from the Sentinel-2 satellite launched by the European Space Agency. ArcGIS supports visualization, interpretation, and analysis of Sentinel imagery, which is of significant value in applications for forestry, agriculture, land resources management, and environmental monitoring.


“Scientists and GIS professionals rely on consistent access to high-quality imagery data and information products for a range of applications in their work observing, modeling, and predicting Earth systems,” said Lawrie Jordan, Esri’s director of imagery and remote sensing. “Sentinel imagery can also be enhanced by the Landsat imagery already available in ArcGIS Online, which provides additional temporal depth.”

One of the unique capabilities ArcGIS offers is that it can work simultaneously with a wide range of spectral bands and indices at different resolutions. ArcGIS has image processing and analysis tools that allow people to view and analyze all types of imagery.

Institutions, organizations, and startup businesses use ArcGIS to manage, analyze, and share imagery and applications related to land monitoring, maritime, climate, and security issues.

For those working with a large collection of images, Esri released an image management workflow for Sentinel. The workflow ensures that Sentinel scenes can be quickly served as dynamic image services, making the full information content accessible to applications for use on desktop, web, and mobile devices. All processing is applied on the fly, with no intermediate storage required.

“The single-button image management workflow tool is an easy way to share and provide access to a wide range of derived Sentinel-2 imagery products,” said Jordan.

Find specific and technical details on the Esri blog

Since 1969, Esri has been giving customers around the world the power to think and plan geographically. The market leader in GIS, Esri software is used in more than 350,000 organizations worldwide including each of the 200 largest cities in the United States, most national governments, more than two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies, and more than 7,000 colleges and universities. Esri applications, running on more than one million desktops and thousands of Web and enterprise servers, provide the backbone for the world’s mapping and spatial analysis. Esri is the only vendor that provides complete technical solutions for desktop, mobile, server, and Internet platforms.

Visit us at www.esri.com.

26th May 2016 – Westminster, London: Earth-i (www.earthi.space), the innovative UK-based distributor of image and data services from the DMC3 / TripleSat satellite constellation, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with space technology and enabled services specialist, Telespazio VEGA.


MoU will allow both companies to offer customers data that combines their specialisations in remote optics and radar technology

This MoU will permit each company to provide each other’s specialist products and services to their respective customers. In the case of Earth-i, this will permit them to provide new and existing customers with advanced synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data from the COSMO-SkyMed satellite constellation alongside their existing optical data.

Telespazio VEGA is owned by European aerospace and defence giants Leonardo– Finmeccanica and Thales. Benefiting from over 35 years of industry experience, their UK operations, which include their ground control centre at Harwell, are headquartered in Luton. Telespazio VEGA, accessing the four satellites of the COSMO-SkyMed constellation, and Earth-i with the DMC3 / TripleSat constellation, will collectively be able to offer seven highly advanced and complementary imaging resources with multiple imaging opportunities each day.

Richard Blain, CEO of Earth-i, commented: “This agreement signed by both parties demonstrates a collaborative relationship between two geospatial companies who can now offer their customers the best of both worlds. By combining SAR and optical data we can provide ever more detailed metrics, analytics and information extraction. All of us look forward to working with our friends at Telespazio VEGA to find new and innovative applications and capabilities from our shared resources.”

Founded and run by prominent and experienced individuals from the Earth Observation industry, Earth-i is another success story from the UK Space industry along with its close neighbours and the satellites’ manufacturer, Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL). Earth-i is significantly increasing its imaging and data services from the DMC3 / TripleSat constellation and places specific focus on fast, easy and convenient access for data users.

Three identical 1 metre resolution optical satellites make up the DMC3 / TripleSat constellation. The unique combination of high spatial and temporal resolution, along with industry-leading technical specifications, serve data users and support a wide range of applications in market sectors including oil and gas, security and defence, agriculture and construction.

Leveraging the inherent high revisit capability of the COSMO-SkyMed constellation, the collaboration with Earth-i will add a minimum of twice daily imaging over any location worldwide and with the advantage of a UK based ground station, it offers unprecedented levels of high assurance imaging regardless of weather conditions combined with much lower latency between acquisition in space and receipt on the ground to around 30 minutes in ideal circumstances.

The high frequency of the COSMO-SkyMed constellation makes it ideal for monitoring applications from wide area maritime surveillance and vessel detection to regional forestry and agricultural compliance applications, near real time flood mapping down to site specific sub-millimetre surface deformation monitoring of individual buildings, roads and bridges.

About Earth-i Ltd:

Earth-i is a British company dedicated to facilitating the distribution of data from the DMC3/TripleSat Constellation. As the master distributor appointed by 21AT, Earth-i provides a portal for data users wishing to take advantage of the advanced data and services made possible by this uniquely capable Earth Observation satellite constellation.

Earth-i is co-located on the Surrey Research Park in the UK with Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd, the manufacturer of the DMC3/Triplesat constellation. www.earthi.space

About Telespazio VEGA UK Ltd:

Telespazio VEGA is the subsidiary of Telespazio (a joint venture of Leonardo – Finmeccanica and Thales). The company is one of the leading UK space services companies and with nearly 40 years’ experience of delivering high value projects and programmes.

Telespazio VEGA is the exclusive distributor for COSMO SkyMed (CSM) radar satellite imagery for the UK on behalf of e-Geos. The images can be delivered in Near Real Time (NRT) using the CSM User Terminal based at the Satellite Applications Catapult in Harwell, Oxfordshire.

For further information, please contact:
Richard Blain
Chief Executive, Earth-i Ltd
Phone (24hrs): +44 (0)333 433 0015
7 Huxley Road,
Surrey Research Park
Guildford, GU2 7RE
United Kingdom
E-mail: richard.blain@earthi.co.uk

Dutch company Orbital Eye has developed a service that uses satellites to monitor gas and oil pipelines. A major African pipeline operator has already signed up for the service.

Worldwide, gas and oil pipelines extend two million km. In most cases, this network is not very deep: just 1.5 m below our feet.

Gas pipes in the EU alone stretch 140 000 km, another 40 000 km carry oil and related products. In addition, there are the final distribution lines to our homes and places of work.

For pipeline operators, safety is paramount. Accidents tend to be serious enough to endanger people and the environment, as well as to damage the pipeline itself.

In Europe, almost half of all failures in high-pressure gas transmission pipelines are caused by excavations, construction work and deep ploughing.

Operators reduce such incidents through aerial surveys from helicopters along the entire pipeline route at least every three weeks.

However, 37% of problems are detected by the public, while aerial inspection surveys pick up only 17%. Orbital Eye’s PIMSyS service can improve this detection rate.

The system uses radar images from satellites in combination with smart software to detect potential threats as well as the slightest ground movement.

Pipeline operators, alerted to suspicious events, then dispatch field personnel to find reported or detected hazards using a tablet app.

The app can connect to the central database via terrestrial networks and satcoms and can therefore be used even in remote locations such as desert areas.

The EU’s Copernicus programme, with its growing constellation of Sentinel satellites, offers free high-quality observation data, day or night, independent of weather conditions.

“We have been using Sentinel-1A imagery since the satellite was launched, and the results have been very positive,” noted Jan Ridder, Managing Director at Orbital Eye.

“Currently, Sentinel-1A data are refreshed on average once every 12 days. Initially, some operators prefer a higher frequency, but once they start using the system they find that the current rate is adequate in many cases.”

Sentinel-1B, launched on 25 April, is expected to provide more regular visits and over larger regions, including Asia, Africa and the USA, allowing Orbital Eye to expand its service.

“Thanks to ESA’s support, we were able to deploy PIMSyS for two operators in 2015, gaining real-world experience. This was critical for gaining the trust of new customers in this industry.”

ESA’s Olivier Becu commented: “Our Integrated Applications Promotions programme gives promising start-ups such as Orbital Eye the opportunity to develop and deploy new space-based services in an operational setting in order to prove their products together with users.”

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