Copernicus program expands Earth observation and monitoring capabilities

The European Space Agency (ESA) and the European Commission continue to advance Earth observation capabilities through the Copernicus program. This infrastructure utilizes a fleet of Sentinel satellites to collect vast amounts of environmental data, including information on air quality, vegetation, temperature, and land use. The Sentinel fleet generates approximately 16 terabytes of data daily, making it the largest environmental monitoring system in the world.

At the Joint Research Center (JRC) in Ispra, Italy, researchers manage the Copernicus Land Monitoring Service (CLMS). This service organizes and maintains data specifically related to soil and land monitoring, acting as a vital component of the broader Copernicus network which also covers climate, marine, atmosphere, emergencies, and security.

ESA’s Earth observation programs, overseen by director Simonetta Cheli, monitor over 20 different missions to track the planet’s health. Recent developments include the launch of the Sentinel-3C satellite from French Guiana and the operationalization of a new Space HPC supercomputer at ESRIN in Frascati, Italy, to support these complex data needs.