European project develops drought prediction software for viticulture

The ‘Germ of Life’ project is developing specialized software to predict droughts, aiming to help the wine industry adapt to increasing water scarcity. By utilizing meteorological data, the initiative seeks to provide producers with early warnings to implement mitigation strategies, such as reorienting vineyards to reduce heat impact, switching to more resilient grape varieties, or adjusting plant density to optimize soil water usage.

The project involves a multidisciplinary team of geographers, physicists, sociologists, computer engineers, and enologists. It integrates data from the Copernicus Earth observation program and Sentinel satellites, alongside local meteorological services.

While the project has a broad European scope, it focuses on Mediterranean countries including Spain (specifically Catalonia), Portugal, Italy, North Macedonia, France, and Greece. Key contributors include the Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV) and the Servei Meteorològic de Catalunya.