Join the webinar on EarthConsole® organized by the ESA Network of Resources

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Are you interested in EarthConsole® and exploring the opportunities offered by the ESA Network of Resources (NoR) initiative?

We are pleased to invite you to an informative webinar session on EarthConsole® next Friday June, 16 at 1 p.m. CEST organized by the ESA NoR initiative. In this webinar, you will:

  • gain a comprehensive overview of the EarthConsole® platform offer with a specific focus on its services:
    – G-BOX: Integrated Development and Execution Environment
    – I-APP: Application Integration Service
    – P-PRO and P-PRO ON DEMAND: Parallel Processing Service
  • explore the features, potential applications and real-world use cases of each service;
  • learn how to take advantage of the EarthConsole® Virtual Labs, the EarthConsole® virtual spaces tailored on the needs of specific Earth Observation communities. These spaces provide access to customized processing services and tools to facilitate collaboration and knowledge sharing.

Who can benefit from this webinar?

If you’re already familiar with EarthConsole® but still uncertain about how you can leverage the ESA Network of EO Resources, this webinar is for you.

If you’re new to EarthConsole® and eager to learn more, this webinar is for you too.

Whether you are a researcher, a professional in the industry or education field, a student working with earth observation data or just a non-practitioner with a passion for learning about Earth Observation (EO) cloud platforms, the webinar is open to all.

No matter your background, we encourage you to join us for this webinar.

How to register

Reserve your spot today by registering here.

We hope to see many of you there!

Banner including Heritage Missions satellites and a button inviting the research community to propose processorsSatellite images © ESA

Invitation to integrate your processor for free on the ESA Heritage Missions Virtual Lab

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Following the launch of the ESA/ESRIN Heritage Missions Virtual Lab hosted on the EarthConsole® platform last week, we would like to invite you to submit proposals for innovative algorithms and techniques to process Heritage Missions data to be made available as on-demand processing services via the lab.

If your processor will be selected by ESA/ESRIN, it will provide other interested researchers with the opportunity to analyze and review the data processed by your processor for their own research goals, in a joint effort to advance together in the study of environmental phenomena impacting our planet.

Once selected the processors, EarthConsole® team of experts will manage and supervise the integration process from start to finish. You will only have to focus on validating processing results.

Proposing your processor is easy – simply join the Heritage Missions Virtual Lab and use the dedicated I-APP form to submit your proposal.

The deadline for submissions is the 16th of June 2023.

For any further information, please have a look at this invitation.

If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@earthconsole.eu with support@earthconsole.eu in cc.

 

Banner: satellites images © ESA
Heritage Missions orbiting the Earth

Introducing the ESA Heritage Missions Virtual Lab on EarthConsole®

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We are excited to announce the launch of the ESA Heritage Missions Virtual Lab hosted on the EarthConsole® platform powered by Progressive Systems. This virtual space offers customized data processing services to harness the inestimable legacy left by the Heritage Missions, all accessible via single sign-on.

If you are not familiar with Heritage Missions, they consist of over 45 non-operational earth observation missions, including cornerstone ESA missions such as the European Remote Sensing satellites, ERS-1 and ERS-2, and ENVISAT. These missions acquired data from various optical, radar, and atmospheric instruments for over 40 years.

As you can imagine, the preservation of data coming from these missions is of key importance for the ongoing environmental research on our planet. When combined with data from new satellites, Heritage Missions data provides a unique opportunity to look back in time and build long-term data series on a diverse range of applications such as climate change, sea levels, surface temperatures, melting ice, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, atmospheric composition, deforestation, urban mapping and much more.

That’s why we have collaborated with ESA to create this Lab which offers research centers and universities the chance to gain a deeper understanding of the evolution of Earth dynamics over time, by leveraging Heritage Missions data and related processors.

We have made sure to maintain the unique features of EarthConsole® intact, that means ensuring the processing capacity and data are co-located. This reduces the time taken for data transfer and enables completion of scalable processing campaigns within the stipulated time frame of research projects.

The Lab lets you:

  • Perform bulk processing campaigns (supervised by EarthConsole® experts) or on demand processing tasks (unsupervised and independently managed by the user) with the Small BAseline Subset – SBAS processor provided by IREA, a scientific and technological research institute belonging to the largest Italian research institution, the National Research Council (CNR). The service provides the possibility to generate soil deformation maps and time series from ERS and ENVISAT data. Additional processors will be integrated in the future.
  • Develop, test algorithms and do post-processing activities on a ready-to-use virtual machine with instant cloud data access, software for Heritage data analysis & visualization already installed and flexible computing resources and storage.
  • Receive expert support to integrate, in principle, any additional processors.
  • Access a set of tools to network and share research results with colleagues: a forum, a repository of processed datasets, and a library with relevant publications and media for consultation.

If you plan to use the lab services for research, educational, or pre-commercial purposes, you may be eligible to submit a sponsorship request to the ESA Network of Resources. If your application will be successful, it would allow you to receive a voucher that may fully cover the costs of the services.

Join the ESA Heritage Missions Virtual Lab today and take advantage of this exceptional opportunity.

To register, simply follow the provided instructions and forms to request the service. And if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us at info@earthconsole.eu with support@earthconsole.eu in cc.

Stay tuned for updates and the upcoming not-to-be-missed invitation to propose your processor to be integrated into the Lab!

 

This is a project supported by the ESA Network of Resources initiative.

Banner including a picture of the Calderone Glacier

EarthConsole® Stories: Application of Differential SAR interferometry techniques for the estimation of snow properties in the Italian central Apennines area

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EarthConsole® Stories are experiences about how we helped universities, research centres or service developers to leverage earth observation data to extract valuable insights for their research, educational or pre-commercial projects.

 

The Project

Snow-mantle extent (or area), its local thickness (or height) and mass (often expressed by the snow water equivalent, SWE) are the main parameters characterizing snow deposits. Such parameters result of particular importance in meteorology, hydrology, and climate monitoring applications. Anyway, in the general case, the considerable geographical extension of snow layers and their typical spatial heterogeneity makes it impractical to monitor snow by means of direct or indirect in situ measurements, suggesting the exploitation of satellite technologies.

Space-borne SAR sensors, such as those operating in Sentinel-1 mission, are particularly suitable for the analysis of snow deposits, providing data with resolutions up to some meters, with global coverage and 6-day revisit time.

SAR backscattering power coefficient can be used to study the effects of backscattering at the air-snow interface, at the snow-ground interface, together with the volumetric effects of the snow layer. The distinction between wet and dry snow can be obtained exploiting the co-polar and cross-polar SAR returns. Differential Interferometric SAR (DInSAR) can be exploited to analyze the effects of air-snow refraction and the snow-ground reflection, together with the coherence and phase-shifts between two sequential images.

The project activities are oriented towards 4 main objectives:

  1. development of a processing chain which, starting from the DInSAR measurements available from Sentinel-1, CSK and SAOCOM, together with fusion with auxiliary data from VIS-IR radiometric measurements and physical-electromagnetic SAR response models, using analytical, Bayesian techniques and/or physically-based neural, both able to estimate the snow cover (SCM, Snow Coverage Map), the depth of the snow layer (Snow Pack Depth, SPD) and the equivalent in snow water (Snow Water Equivalent, SWE) in the Central Apennines at a resolution around 100 m;
  2. creation of a forecast chain that, starting from the SMIVIA (Snow-coverage Modeling, Inversion and Validation using multi-mission multi-frequency Interferometric SAR in central Apennine) products of SCM, SPD and SWE, using the Alpine 3D dynamic snowpack model on the Abruzzo region, forced by forecasting of the Weather Research & Forecasting (WRF) meteorological numerical model and snow precipitation estimates from meteorological radar on the ground, is able to predict in the following 24-48 hours the state of the snowpack and its properties at a resolution of 1-3 km;
  3. validation of the SCM, SWE and SPD estimates with in-situ measurements on the pilot and verification sites identified in the central Apennines (Gran Sasso and Calderone glacieret, Campo Felice and the mountains of L’Aquila), carried out using multifrequency georadar sensors, radio meteorological remote sensing sensors, chemical-physical sensors and meteo-snow sensors also on the area of the Calderone glacieret;
  4. application of the processing and forecasting chain to an inflows / outflows model for the management of water resources and to the issuance of the avalanche danger alert over extended regions on the basis of quantitative maps at 24-48 hours in advance.

Backscattering coefficient, Coherence and Interferometric Phase

The Need

Satellite data cover large areas at different resolutions and were considered as the perfect candidates to correct snow cover models using gridded data from coarse to fine resolutions. Optical data for example can give information of snow cover extent and albedo, whereas with DinSAR techniques it is possible to estimate the snow height variation between different dates, or even the snowpack liquid water content.

SAR data processing can be performed in different ways to retrieve snow parameters. SAR backscattering power coefficient can be used to study the effects of backscattering at the air-snow interface, at the snow-ground interface, together with the volumetric effects of the snow layer. The distinction between wet and dry snow can be obtained exploiting the copolar and cross-polar SAR returns. Differential Interferometric SAR (DInSAR) can be exploited to analyze the effects of air-snow refraction and the snow-ground reflection, together with the coherence and phase-shifts between two sequential images.

Why EarthConsole®

The EarthConsole® G-BOX service has been selected for this project and used thanks to a sponsorship received from the ESA Network of Resources initiative.

G-BOX has been chosen since it is a Cloud Virtual Machine (VM) which features high flexibility for the configuration (CPU/RAM/DISK) and provides pre-installed software specific for EO data processing.

Picture of Gianluca Palermo, PostDoc Researcher at Sapienza University

The virtual machine proved to be the optimal solution for our data processing needs thanks to the customizable configuration options combined with pre-installed software, global accessibility and embedded access to the datasets offered by the Copernicus Data and Information Access Services – DIAS.

The project impact

The project takes advantage of multi-mission interferometric SAR techniques in L, C, and X bands and focuses attention on a geographic region particularly sensitive to climate change, namely the central Apennines where the southernmost glacier in Europe, the Calderone glacier, is located.

This research might potentially have impact on various aspects of environment and society, including provision of useful information in terms of avalanche warning, monitoring of climate change evolution, flood forecasting and water volumes expected for the hydric supply.

 

References:

Palermo, E. Raparelli, P. Tuccella, M. Orlandi and F. S. Marzano, “Using Artificial Neural Networks to Couple Satellite C-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar Interferometry and Alpine3D Numerical Model for the Estimation of Snow Cover Extent, Height, and Density,” in IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing, vol. 16, pp. 2868-2888, 2023, doi: 10.1109/JSTARS.2023.3253804.

Banner including two pictures: one of polar ices and the other one of a coast

EarthConsole® selected as service provider for two OCRE funded research projects

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EarthConsole® by Progressive Systems was chosen as the preferred service provider for two research projects awarded through the OCRE (Open Clouds for Research Environments) call for funding Earth Observation services. These projects required extensive processing campaigns for different objectives using processors from the SARvatore (SAR Versatile Altimetric TOolkit for Research & Exploitation) family of processors. These processors were integrated by Progressive Systems into the ESA Altimetry Virtual Lab on the EarthConsole® platform in 2021, following the previous ten-year experience as RSS G-POD operator at the European Space Agency.

With this long-term processing heritage, EarthConsole® was the clear choice for the research institutions leading the projects. In this blog post, we’ll delve into the details of these exciting projects and how EarthConsole® plans to contribute to their success.

The supported projects

Project: CryoSSARinSAM+
Research Institution: Technical University of Denmark – DTU SPACE (Denmark)

The Polar regions are important to study for a number of reasons. In an era of climate change, melting ice is expected to accelerate sea level change. In the past, various research groups have processed the first 9 years (2010.07-2020) of Cryosat radar altimetry for the Polar Oceans independently, using EarthConsole® or using the G-POD On Demand platform computing services. To continue this vital timeseries up through 2023 and also extend the Polar regions coverage to all regions outside the 50 degree parallel, this project was established.

CryoSSARinSAM+ aims at developing a common processing chain configuration to produce a single, open-access CryoSat-2 altimetry mission dataset that can support radar altimetry research of the polar oceans (both for the northern and southern hemisphere).

This dataset will have a wide range of potential applications, such as studying sea level, circulation, and trends in ice-covered polar seas; improving algorithms to monitor coastal sea level; estimating the thickness of summer sea ice; measuring significant wave height in polar oceans; and enhancing measurements of winter sea ice thickness in the Arctic and Antarctic, among other.

We want this dataset to become a reference standard for the radar altimetry research community, playing a pivotal role in advancing our knowledge of the polar oceans and ice cover, and the impact of climate change on them. A number of research institutions have been onboard designing this study and will directly ingest these data in their ongoing research

Ole B. Andersen
Professor, Department of Space Research and Technology
Geodesy and Earth Observation
DTU SPACE

Project: Assessment of renewable wave energy resources in the coastal zone using high-resolution altimetry products
Research Institution: CENTEC (Centre for Marine Technology and Ocean Engineering), Instituto Superior Tecnico , (Associação do Instituto Superior Técnico para a Investigação e Desenvolvimento) – IST-ID, (Portugal)

The project’s primary objective is to evaluate the potential of wave renewable energy sources in the Atlantic Ocean, with a particular emphasis on the coastal region, where the energy can be efficiently harnessed. To achieve this objective, the project is processing the whole CryoSat, Sentinel-3A, and Sentinel-3B missions data over specific coastal zones and using an improved geophysical retrieval algorithm: SAMOSA+ (Dinardo et al. 2018, Dinardo 2020).

The datasets generated through this project are expected to have a multitude of applications, ranging from evaluating renewable energy sources to gaining a better understanding of the impact of waves on the rise of sea levels. We want this project to benefit the whole altimetry research community, this is why the findings will be shared as we complete the project

Sonia Ponce de Leon A.
Assistant Researcher
CENTEC-IST-University of Lisbon

 

Why EarthConsole®

EarthConsole® has been selected as the optimal service provider to perform the processing activities requested by the projects.

With the ESA Altimetry Virtual Lab (AVL) hosted on the platform, EarthConsole® provides the necessary services and solutions to cater to the specific needs of the altimetry research community.

The ESA Altimetry Virtual Lab is hosting SARvatore for CryoSat-2, SARINvatore for CryoSat-2, and SARvatore for Sentinel-3 processors, among others. These processors will be used to reprocess CryoSat-2 altimetry mission data (CryoSSARinSAM+) and Sentinel-3A & Sentinel-3B data (Assessment of renewable wave energy resources in the coastal zone using high-resolution altimetry products) on specific areas and periods of interests indicated by the research institutions.

EarthConsole® utilizes flexible computing resources such as Worker Nodes, CPU, and RAM, in combination with a quick access to data on a Copernicus DIAS infrastructure. This minimises the impact of data transfer on processing time, enabling scalable processing campaigns to be completed within the projects’ time constraints.

In addition, EarthConsole® experts will oversee all processing activities, freeing up researchers from the task of managing the processing campaign and IT infrastructure, allowing them to focus on their research goals.

In conclusion, EarthConsole® has once again demonstrated its commitment to providing innovative solutions that add value to altimetry research. With the needed processors, flexible computing resources, the quick access to the Copernicus datasets, and the right expertise, researchers can confidently pursue their research objectives, knowing that they have a reliable partner to support their efforts.

 

4 reasons why educators should bring Earth Observation to high school

4 reasons why educators should bring Earth Observation to high school

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From the devastating impacts of climate change to the unprecedented loss of biodiversity, it’s clear that the health of our planet is a top priority. As we continue to grapple with these complex environmental challenges, it’s becoming increasingly apparent that the solutions will require a multifaceted approach. From policy changes to technological innovations, there are many paths forward that should not overlook the role of education.

In order to address the increasing environmental challenges we face, we must equip students with the knowledge and skills to create a sustainable future for all.

That’s where earth observation comes in.

By leveraging the power of earth observation data and technology, educators can provide students with the relevant skills to better keep track of the dynamics of our planet.

If you are new to earth observation, a definition is necessary: Earth Observation is defined as the process of acquiring observations of the Earth’s surface and atmosphere via remote sensing instruments, for example satellites or drones1. This field plays a crucial role in understanding the planet, monitoring and mitigating climate change, preventing natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods or fires, and better managing natural resources.

If you’re a school administrator or a teacher here are the 4 reasons why incorporating Earth Observation training into the school curricula is essential to prepare students to become informed and prepared citizens who are ready to act for environmental protection.

Reason #1 Earth Observation will enable your students to be environmentally aware and make a difference.

With the growing availability of satellite data and the free and open data policies, satellite observations can be considered more and more as a valuable source of information to monitor actions on the sustainable development of our planet.

For instance this is what is stated in the ESA Compendium of EO contributions to the SDG Targets and Indicators2. Satellite data can bring a relevant contribution in measuring progress towards many Sustainable Development Goals. Guaranteeing the supply of EO data and ensuring capacity to use such data are critical steps that can help countries in setting their SDG targets and monitor progress.

By bringing earth observation into the classroom, your students will try their hand at developing applications that extract value-added information for monitoring environmental, climate and/or land resources.

Reason #2 Your students will get familiar with cutting edge technologies.

Teaching information extraction techniques from satellites data goes hand in hand with the use of advanced technologies.

New information technologies are revolutionising the way we manage the vast amount of data from satellite missions to address environmental challenges. The advent of cloud environments represents a crucial breakthrough: users no longer have to spend time and resources downloading data to their computer for processing but can access them directly on the cloud to analyse them more efficiently.

In addition, cloud environments co-locate computing power and data, allowing to perform data processing and analysis tasks with a scalable capacity, even in the order of petabytes.

For example, here at EarthConsole® we offer virtual machines that can help your students try their hand at building algorithms that run on Earth observation datasets. The virtual machine comes with pre-installed software for earth observation data exploitation and can be easily configured with the same settings for an entire classroom, allowing students to use it from anywhere and with their own devices.

This technological revolution represents an unprecedented opportunity that opens new horizons for the development of innovative and efficient solutions to tackle climate change and better manage natural resources.

Reason #3 You will orientate your students towards STEM Education

Earth Observation data specialists can have differentiated university backgrounds ranging from engineering to computer science and mathematics. Integrating earth observation into your curricula could be an excellent way to broaden the prospects for choosing a university and/or professional path in the STEM field (Science, Technology, Engineers and Mathematics).

Also, let’s not forget that supporting STEM Education could help addressing the gender and diversity gap in science and technology fields. According to the UNESCO Science Report 20213, women make up only 28% of engineering graduates and 40% of those in computer science. Encouraging and supporting underrepresented groups to pursue STEM education and careers can help to bridge this gap and ensure a diverse and inclusive workforce.

Reason #4 There is high-demand for Data Specialists

The Earth Observation industry is growing, with a rapidly expanding market and increasing demand for advanced technologies, services and thus professionals.

The EUSPA EO and GNSS Market Report 20224 states that Earth Observation data and service revenues are set to double from roughly €2.8 billion to over €5.5 billion over the next decade.

The market for Earth Observation applications is boosted by a large pool of value-added services contributing to the most variegated market segments ranging from Climate Services to Urban Development and Cultural Heritage, Agriculture, Energy and Raw Materials and the Insurance and Finance Segment.

With the industry, the demand for specialized workforce grows as well.

As highlighted in the LinkedIn Jobs on the Rise Report 2023, Data Engineer is one of the fastest-growing job titles in Europe over the past five years. Data engineers specialize in developing tools for collecting and analyzing large volumes of data, to address complex challenges and aid decision-making.

In conclusion, Earth Observation is a powerful tool that educators should consider bringing into their high school classrooms. By incorporating Earth Observation technologies and data into their curricula, educators can provide students with hands-on learning experiences that enhance their understanding of the natural world and help develop essential skills.

With the potential to inspire and engage students in science and technology, Earth Observation has the power to make a lasting impact on the next generations.

 

1 ESA Newcomers Earth Observation Guide https://business.esa.int/newcomers-earth-observation-guide
2 EARTH OBSERVATION FOR SDG “Compendium of Earth Observation contributions to the SDG Targets and Indicators” https://eo4society.esa.int/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/EO_Compendium-for-SDGs.pdf
3 UNESCO Science Report 2021: The race against time for smarter development https://www.unesco.org/reports/science/2021/en/download-report
4 The EUSPA Earth Observation (EO) & Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Market Report https://www.euspa.europa.eu/sites/default/files/uploads/euspa_market_report_2022.pdf

We provide the technology you need to deliver earth observation trainings to your students

Contact Us
EarthConsole: Our earth observation data processing platform in brief

New to EarthConsole®? Our earth observation data processing platform in brief

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We often receive many questions about how to start with our services and how to use them at no charge. We have collected some of the answers to your questions in this post.

If you need extra clarifications, drop us an email at info@earthconsole.eu.

Request service

What is EarthConsole® for?

EarthConsole® is a cloud-based platform to ease the exploitation of earth observation data. Thanks to its computing power co-located with EO data archives, it offers support solutions from developing algorithms to bulk processing, and everything that is between.

Let’s take a deeper look at what they are for:

  • G-BOX Algorithm Development and Execution Environment: you can develop and test your algorithm and do post-processing analysis on a virtual machine with fast access to the Copernicus DIAS datasets and pre-installed software.
  • I-APP Application Integration Service: either you have developed your algorithm or you wish to use a third party application for processing, you can rely on our expert support to integrate it into the EarthConsole® environment for massive processing.
  • P-PRO Parallel Processing Service: you will be enabled to scale up your processing campaign on a wider area of interest and time window.
  • P-PRO ON DEMAND Parallel Processing on Demand: to manage small processing tasks via the user-friendly interface of our P-PRO ON DEMAND platform.

EarthConsole® supports the principles of a User-Centred Design approach. We focus on our users’ needs in all phases of the development of the platform. We always have an ear to listen to your feedback to evolve our solutions.

Who should use EarthConsole®?

EarthConsole® is for all those who need to process earth observation data in the R&D phase of their project. For sure researchers, PhDs, the stakeholders orbiting around ESA and national space agencies are the primary beneficiaries of EarthConsole®. But our services are not limited to these typologies of users.

Startups innovators and entrepreneurs not belonging to the earth observation domain can also take advantage of our services. For example, they can receive training in the pre-commercial phase of their project to better learn how to use satellite data to develop new services with high-commercial value.

Let’s not forget about universities and their students. The data scientist is one of the most fast-growing occupations. We are in the position to offer training experiences providing a solid preparation on the Copernicus satellites sensors, characteristics, data typologies and their main applications.

Plus, G-BOX enables mass configuration of tens of virtual machines with the same settings which you can access from any location and any OS (Windows, Linux, MAC). This makes it the ideal solution for a class of students intending to improve their skills with the development of earth observation applications.

Which are the processors ready for use?

We have a list of processors for Altimetry, SAR and Optical applications, integrated and ready to use either for bulk and/or on-demand processing:

And if the processor you need is not there, you can ask us to integrate it with the I-APP service. EarthConsole® allows to integrate in principle any processor also coming from other platforms. And you can in any moment decide to share the processor with other users or keep it for your use only.

How to receive a voucher for using EarthConsole®?

Well yes, you may use our services at no charge for you or your institution. Our solutions are on the ESA EO Network of Resources (NoR), an initiative to foster the use of cloud environments. If you have a research, educational or pre-commercial project, you can ask for a voucher which may totally cover the costs of our services.

The process to request the voucher is very simple, and we will be there to guide you step by step.

But you may be wondering what happens if the sponsorship application at NoR is not successful.
You don’t have to worry because you won’t have to buy the service at your own expenses if you don’t want to. You will be able to withdraw your service request, without any penalty.

How can you start?

First you must request the service you need through our webapp. We will receive your request and do our assessment to offer the solution that best fits your needs.

In case you will select the NoR sponsorship option, we will provide you with the voucher request form filled in for your approval and signature. If it is ok, you will have to submit it to NoR and wait for the evaluation.

In case of acceptance, we will contact you to start using EarthConsole® services.

As easy as it sounds!

EarthConsole 2021-2022

One year of EarthConsole®
Figures 2021/2022

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July marked EarthConsole®’s first year of operations. This infographic shows some figures on the projects we supported with our processing solutions for earth observation data.

One year of EarthConsole

Following in the footsteps of ESA RSS’s success Progressive Systems operated until June 2021, the first year confirmed EarthConsole® was able to respond to the needs of different research communities in all the phases of their research process. The platform has also proven to be an effective solution for educators and students. This is because EarthConsole® offers solutions ranging from algorithm development and testing to scalable massive processing campaigns, and all that’s in between. All these solutions are flexible, customizable, and scalable to meet the users’ requirements.

The user-centred evolution of our solutions is one of the founding principles of EarthConsole®. With the objective of responding to the emerging needs of our users’ community, the platform was enriched with virtual laboratories dedicated to specific communities of earth observers (see Virtual Labs). Ad hoc processing services are made available in a virtual space, through which it is also possible to network with colleagues and exchange information through forums, a repository of datasets and much more.

We remind you that if you are conducting research or have a pre-commercial or educational project, the ESA Network of Resources can grant you a voucher to access our services free of charge.

Join our community of 180+ registered users now, request a service here and we will support you all the way to submit a sponsorship application for your project to NoR.

P-PRO ON DEMAND

EarthConsole® P-PRO On Demand for fast EO data access and rapid processing

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EarthConsole® has been designed to assist users throughout the different phases of their research project, offering support services along the whole process from algorithm development and testing to massive processing campaigns. All this while ensuring a high degree of scalability of the processing capacity to create flexible services which help researchers to:

  1. overcome the need of implementing their processing capability in their own research infrastructure
  2. save costs and time on processing activities and
  3. improve their efficiency on the research project they are undertaking.

With this goal in mind, in early 2022 we have launched P-PRO On Demand, the EarthConsole® service providing the capacity to process online and on-demand EO data from ESA and non-ESA missions. The P-PRO On Demand platform is a flexible platform where you can perform small processing tasks and multiple tests by configuring the area of interest, the time window and customizable processor input parameters according to your requirements and autonomously, thanks to a user-friendly and intuitive interface.

P-PRO On Demand in a nutshell

Choose the processor from a set of ready to use services

In principle, any processor can be integrated in P-PRO and associated with a dedicated ready to use on-demand service (for more info see I-APP). During these first months of operations , upon processor owners’ requests, some integrations have been already successfully carried out. Therefore, at present the P-PRO On Demand application catalogue includes L1b & L2 customisable processors, enabling Sentinel-1 GRD IW and EW, Sentinel-2 L1C, Sentinel-3 SRAL and Cryosat-2 SIRAL SAR & SARin & FF-SAR data processing.

You can select the processor you need to perform your processing tasks from a set of services ready for use:

  • ALES+ SAR Retracker – developed by the Technical University of Munich,
  • FF-SAR (Fully Focused SAR) for CryoSat-2 and Sentinel-3 – developed by Aresys srl,
  • SARINvatore for CS-2, SARvatore for CS-2, SARvatore for S3 – developed by the ESA-ESRIN Altimetry Team
  • TUDaBO SAR-RDSAR – developed by the University of Bonn
  • Sen2CorSNAC – SNAP S-1 GRD Amplitude Change

P-PRO ON DEMAND processing services

And more processors are to come, also provided by users. Thanks to the P-PRO On Demand infrastructure flexibility, it is possible to integrate new processors which are not currently available in the platform. By resorting to the I-APP service, it is possible to request the integration of your own processor, and freely decide to keep it private or share it with the EarthConsole® community.

Select an area of interest and a time window

Next, thanks to the interactive web interface, it is possible to draw an area of interest, select the acquisition time and one of the available input EO data collections.

P-PRO ON DEMAND - area of interest and acquisition time

It is then possible to configure the processor parameters according to your requirements, and submit the task, to launch the processing.

Monitor the whole processing in real time

Following the submission of the job, P-PRO On Demand allows you to monitor the status of the processing tasks in real time and in complete autonomy. Once the processing has been completed you can easily access the task’s log files and results from the task history dashboard.

P-PRO ON DEMAND - Processing Monitoring

How to get started

You can request the service by filling in the form at this link, which will be assessed by our team. Usually each user will be allocated 500 credits (corresponding to 500 processing hours). In case you have specific needs, you can request up to 2200 credits, by specifying the reasoning of your request.

If you have a research, development or pre-commercial project, P-PRO On Demand may be accessible free of charge in the framework of the ESA Network of Resources initiative. Our team provides complete support to submit a sponsorship request for your project, allowing you to benefit from EarthConsole® services at no additional cost for you.

More information is available here.

In addition to the NoR Framework, EarthConsole® services are also available via the OCRE Earth Observation Catalogue for Research. If you are an OCRE EO funding for research winner, EarthConsole® may be selected as a service provider for your research project. More information is available in this blog post we published last March.

For more clarifications, contact us at info@earthconsole.eu.

EarthConsole® on the OCRE Earth Observation Catalogue for Research

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EarthConsole® has been registered in the OCRE Earth Observation (EO) Catalogue for Research and its offering may now be selected by EO funding for research winners.

OCRE (Open Clouds for Research Environments) is a Horizon 2020 project funded by the European Union that aims to enable and facilitate research institutions to use commercial digital services in a safe and easy manner.

EO and cloud-based services offer the European research community a wealth of powerful tools, but for many researchers, these are currently out of reach, with suitable services difficult to find and select.

The OCRE project wants to address this need by making it easier to procure both Cloud and EO services. The EO Catalogue is a key result of such a project which aims to create a digital single marketplace for commercial EO and Cloud services for research in Europe.

The Earth Observation Catalogue is a useful tool for EO Funding for Research winners to find validated cloud and digital services which respond to the research and education communities’ requirements, saving institutions the time-consuming and complex process of doing this by themselves. For each of the EO Funding for Research winners, at least three of the EO companies in the OCRE EO Catalogue will be shortlisted to choose from. Then, based on the requirements and criteria of the research project and the response from these suppliers, a provider will be awarded, fulfilling the minimum requirements for a fair procurement.

Find us in the catalogue!