A promotional banner for the 'BeGEO Scientists Webinar' on April 9, 2025, from 15:30 to 17:00 CEST. The webinar focuses on 'InSAR and P-SBAS applications in Earth Sciences' and the 'EarthConsole® platform for assisted processing of large Earth Observation datasets.' The banner has a yellow background with blue text and logos of supporting organizations, including BeGEO Association, EarthConsole®, Progressive Systems, and IREA-CNR.

Join the 3rd BeGEO webinar on InSAR and P-SBAS applications in Earth Sciences

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We’ve teamed up with the BeGEO Association and the Italian Istituto per il Rilevamento Elettromagnetico dell’Ambiente (IREA-CNR), to bring you the 3rd BeGEO webinar entitled “InSAR and P-SBAS applications in Earth Sciences. The EarthConsole® platform for the assisted processing of large Earth Observation datasets”.

The webinar will be held on April 9, 2025, from 15:30 to 17:00 (CEST).

REGISTER HERE

Why this webinar?

Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) is a powerful technique that allows for the analysis of Earth’s surface motions caused by both natural and anthropogenic processes. However, the processing of large SAR datasets needs large in-house processing resources.

That’s where EarthConsole® steps in.

EarthConsole® is Progressive Systems’ cloud-based platform that helps institutions, researchers, and developers create, test, and host applications and processors, enabling simplified access to Earth Observation data and processing services. By co-locating computing resources with data archives, the platform ensures faster and more efficient data processing.

During the webinar we present an overview of the InSAR theory and show the application of the P-SBAS on-demand service for Sentinel-1 (2016–present) and ENVISAT (2002–2012) hosted on the EarthConsole® platform to produce time-series of incremental ground motions and maps of the average velocities. A particular focus will be given to the study of ground deformation caused by both natural and anthropogenic processes. A demonstration will guide participants through the request and practical use of the service, with a particular emphasis on the graphical user interface (GUI) and processing parameters.

At the end of the webinar the attendants will be acquainted with the InSAR principles, as also with the procedure to request the P-SBAS service and process their own data on EarthConsole®.

What’s on the Agenda?

  • 15:30:16:00 – Dr. Claudio De Luca, Researcher at IREA-CNR: Differential SAR Interferometry: Principles, techniques and applications.
  • 16:00-16:20 – Massimo Orlandi, Engineer on Earth Observation projects (Progressive Systems): P-PRO On-Demand P-SBAS service: Live Demonstration
  • 16:20-16:40 – Maddalena Iesué, Communication and Partnerships Manager (Progressive Systems): How to request free access to the P-PRO On-Demand P-SBAS service and Overview of EarthConsole®
  • 16:40-17:00 – Q&A section

Bonus for attendees

Upon request, we will provide attendees with a one-week free trial, including up to 30 processing hours, to test the P-SBAS for Sentinel-1 on-demand service on EarthConsole®. Instructions for making the request will be shared during the webinar.

See you soon online!

 

This webinar is supported by the ESA Network of Resources Initiative
Image showing a sand dam in Kenya, near terraced farm hills.

EarthConsole® Stories: monitoring sand dams’ impact on water availability with satellite image time-series analysis

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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

Climate change driven by human activity is significantly altering the water cycle at global, regional, and local levels, with these effects expected to intensify in the coming years (Pörtner et al. 2022). In semi-arid regions, prolonged dry periods and high evaporation are already reducing the availability of usable water in river systems, with direct negative consequences for ecosystems and the livelihoods of local communities (Kalele et al. 2021).

Currently, around 1.5 billion people live in semi-arid areas and this number is expected to increase due to shifts in climate zones. To ensure their food security and counteract the impending water shortage, measures are necessary on different spatial and temporal scales. A comparatively simple and cost-effective method is the construction of dams along the flow cross-section of seasonal rivers. These act as natural barriers and within a few years fill up with sediment, in which the water collects and is protected from evaporation and too rapid runoff.

Led by Dr. Andreas Braun from the University of Tübingen, this research project aims to assess the impact of sand dams on water availability in selected African regions. Using time series analysis of satellite images, the study seeks to quantitatively and qualitatively evaluate how sand dams influence their surrounding environments.

The Need

To conduct this research, the research team needed advanced Earth Observation (EO) tools capable of analyzing long-term surface changes around sand dams. These dams gradually alter ground levels, leading to positive environmental effects such as for example increased soil moisture, enhanced vegetation growth, and reduced land degradation.

However, conventional EO approaches often struggle to capture changes in seasonal river systems, requiring the use of indirect indicators like vegetation cover and land-use modifications. To overcome this limitation, the team sought a solution that could track changes through closely spaced time series observations.

Why EarthConsole®

EarthConsole® was selected for its access to the P-SBAS (Parallel Small BAseline Subset) on-demand service for Sentinel-1, provided by IREA-CNR. This service implements an advanced InSAR technique enabling the generation of Earth surface deformation time-series and, more generally, interferometric products through an intuitive graphical user interface (GUI). The GUI allows the user to select SAR data for specific areas and time periods, set processing parameters, and download processing results autonomously.

Reflecting on his experience, Dr. Braun shared:

EarthConsole®’s P-SBAS for Sentinel-1 on demand service has been selected to enrich our research. In addition to Sentinel-2, US Landsat Missions and hyperspectral data such as EnMap, we wanted to explore the potential of Sentinel-1 SAR data to provide new insights into deformations caused by water extraction but also increased storage volume near the identified sand dams.

Dr. Andreas Braun, Academic Researcher, University of Tübingen – Germany

 

The Impact

This research has the potential to transform the use of sand dams as a climate adaptation strategy. It is based on the hypothesis that sand dams have a positive effect on their environment, but that this effect varies depending on the climate zone and landscape. By incorporating satellite-based monitoring, the project aims to showcase how sand dams can effectively mitigate water shortages, helping local communities build resilience against climate change.

This project has been supported via the ESA Network of Resources initiative.