As a part of the on-going joint ESA-NASA AMPAC initiative, ESA organised a training course in collaboration with NASA, the Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing System (SIOS) and the University Centre in Svalbard (UNIS). The course brought 22 students and multiple lecturers from all over the world to Longyearbyen, Svalbard to teach about understanding methane …
INTRODUCTION The African Research Fellowship (ARF) program, jointly carried by ESA with the African Union Commission, was successfully initiated in 2021 with six African Fellows having completed their research at ESA. The program aims to empower African Researchers (PhD or Master degree with extensive research experience in EO) to engage in Earth Observation (EO) R&D …
Sen2Cor is the official ESA Sentinel-2 ground segment processor which performs atmospheric correction of Top of Atmosphere images (L1C) to return several outputs, including Surface Reflectance images (L2A) and a Scene Classification (SCL). The Scene Classification derived with the current version of the Sen2Cor provides pixel-based information on vegetated/non-vegetated areas, water, cloud probabilities, thin cirrus, …
As fire events become more intense and frequent, the urgency for effective and proactive fire science grows. The FLARE (Fire science Learning AcRoss the Earth System) Working Group, consisting of scientists from 14 countries and various disciplines, has produced a white paper to address the complexities of fire science from a holistic perspective. This paper …
Following the kick-off with ESA of the second phase of activities to be carried by the EO AFRICA (African Framework for Research, Innovation, Communities and Applications) R&D Facility, two new calls have just been opened aiming to sustain and strengthen an active African research community, by promoting creative innovation processes for the continuous development of …
Following the successful conclusion of the first 3 years of activity, the EO AFRICA R&D Facility has been granted with an extension to continue strengthening the African-European partnership until 2027. Training events and calls for collaboration opportunities in research and education are foreseen in the months to come, so stay tuned with the EO AFRICA …
The Geohazards Exploitation Platform (GEP) is the outcome of an ESA initiative to implement Thematic Exploitation Platforms, i.e. advanced on-line processing environments dedicated to user communities in specific thematic areas. The GEP is looking at geological and hydrogeological hazards with a focus on terrain motion mapping. In the context of its current evolution, the GEP …
Methane emissions from fossil fuel production are a major component of the anthropogenic methane emission budget. Emissions from this sector often occur as strong plumes from so-called point sources, which include infrastructure elements such as flares, compressor stations, storage tanks, or mine vents. Satellite remote sensing represents a key technology for systematic monitoring of methane …
The recent EO for agriculture under pressure event, which took place at ESA-ESRIN last week, brought together a notable number of participants, with 300 attendees in person from 43 different countries and more than 500 joining online connecting a diverse audience from various locations. The workshop explored the role of Earth Observation in addressing the …
ESA’s World Fire Atlas, an essential tool in wildfire monitoring, keeps detecting and mapping active fires globally since 2019 thanks to the SLSTR sensor aboard Sentinel-3. The tool already counted 258 fires in Canada in 2024 up to 13 May. At the same time, the extent of air pollution caused by these wildfires are highlighted …
