EO Africa F2F Training #3: Cloud Computing and Algorithms for EO Analyses

The third F2F course of he EO AFRICA R&D Facility will take place in Rabat in close cooperation with CRASTE-LF (African Regional Centre for Space Science and Technology in French Language).

Deadline for applications: 30th May 2022

This course introduces participants to Cloud Computing and its usage for Earth Observation (EO) data analyses. It starts with big geospatial data concepts and extends to Cloud Computing as one of the solutions for solving the problems of big EO data. The EO AFRICA Facility Innovation Lab will be introduced as an example of a cloud computing platform for working with EO data. We will cover Jupyter Notebooks and JupyterLab as the proper solution for developing analytical procedures accompanied with documentation on cloud computing platforms. In the next step, the course focuses on some of the Python libraries to develop programs that handle and analyze EO data. We will explain how participants can programmatically access different EO datasets using online catalogue services and DIAS platforms on the Innovation Lab and utilize the data in their algorithms.

Upon completion of this course, the participant will:

• Define Cloud Computing and explain the benefits of using Cloud Computing for EO Analysis,
• Compare different cloud computing platforms,
• Work with Innovation Lab (the cloud computing platform provided by the EO AFRICA R&D Facility),
• Work with important Python Libraries for processing EO data,
• Implement processing procedures as interactive Jupyter Notebooks on the Innovation Lab,
• Load and Process EO data from DIAS platforms using Python.

Who can participate?

Space is limited to max. 25 Participants. Participants will be selected on the basis of their academic background, work experience and motivation to participate. If you are selected you will receive a confirmation e-mail with further information by June 4.

Participants should reside in one of the African countries, should have an academic background related to Geoinformation/Earth Observation Science in combination with knowledge on Water Resources Management, Irrigation, Agriculture or similar, Young researchers in this field are encouraged to apply!

Language: English

Schedule:

Each day will consist of morning and afternoon sessions with total duration of 6 hours. The sessions will focus on the introduction to the general set-up of the EO AFRICA R&D facility, introduction to the cloud computing environment, Jupyter Notebooks and JupyterLab for interactive computing, use of Python libraries for retrieving EO, access to EO data on the Innovation Lab through DIAS platforms and dedicated libraries.

• Morning session – 9:30 – 12:00 – 2.5 hours.
• Lunch break at 12:00 – 13:00.
• Afternoon session 13:00 – 16:30 – 3.5 hours.

Certificate of completion:

All participants who will complete the course and present their individual case study will receive a Certificate of completion issued by the EO AFRICA R&D Facility.

Technical requirements:

Participants are requested to bring their own (updated) laptop.

It is strongly advised that the participants follow the first 2 On-line courses of the EO Africa R&D Space Academy (“Cloud Computing and Algorithms for EO Analyses” and “Principles of and advances in Earth Observation“). The courses are currently closed but participants will get access upon acceptance for this Face to Face course.

Cost:

Attendance to the training course is free of charge.

Participants will need to arrange and pay their own travel, subsistence and accommodation. Lunch will be provided during the workshop. The Facility can sponsor up to EUR 200 to cover such expenses. Should you want to apply for this funding, please indicate it in the application form.

We advise you to book your stay in Royal Hôtel Rabat from where transport to and from the venue will be arranged. Booking can be done via hotelroyalrabat@gmail.com

More information:

The course is organised in the context of the EO AFRICA R&D. To know more about upcoming face-to-face trainings in this series, visit the EO Africa R&D Space Academy website.

Other resources from EO AFRICA R&D:
– Webinar Series on EO for Water and Food Security
– MOOC on Drought Assessment and Monitoring from Space