Future EO Data Preservation and Valorisation Scenarios

GSCB Workshop 2015 ESA-ESRIN, 24 September 2015

Mirko Albani (ESA)

Data is the new gold

• The socio-economic impact of data, information and knowledge has long been recognised for stimulating innovation, growth, wealth, employment and social development in general.

• EC Communication (COM 2014) 442 to the European Parliament “Towards a thriving data-driven economy” indicates that “data-driven innovation (DDI)” will be at the centre of the future knowledge economy and society in Europe.

• EC Recommendation (2012/417/EU) “Access to and preservation of scientific information” recommends Member States to preserve and open access to research data and scientific information.

• The 4th Research Paradigm of Data Intensive Science is based on access & analysis of large amounts of new & existing data created by scientific instruments & computers but also by processing & collating existing archived data.

“Data is the new gold. We have a huge goldmine … Let’s start mining it.”

Neelie Kroes, Vice-President of the EC responsible for the Digital Agenda, Dec 2011

• About 20 to 30 years of continuous measurements from space available for many geophysical parameters: LONG TIME DATA SERIES

• Need to ensure continuity of observations and comparability with current/future data (e.g. Sentinels) providing new opportunities for European Users, Operators and Value Adders

Example: Total Column Water Vapour from 1991 onwards based on ATSR data

Realizing the full potential of Earth Sciences through harnessing “Big Earth Science Data”

Example: Greenland glaciers as seen by 3 generations of

radar missions: Seasat (1978), ERS (1996), S-1A (2014)

Enabling factor: availability of “Good quality, reliable, interoperable, trusted and curated new & historical data” and their associated information.

ESA Long Time Data Series (excerpt)

Missions in red are covered by the ESA LTDP Programme

ESA Heritage EO Data Holdings Utilization

• Extremely high interest from users on heritage EO data

• Data value & utilization increase if part of long time data series

• More than 1700 new ERS and Envisat user projects registered in the period Jan 2014 – June 2015 out of a total of about 9400 projects registered since 2002

Future EO Data Preservation and Valorization Scenario

Overarching Objective: “Better Serve the EO User Community” through better data availability, better data access, enabling users (expand user

base, new collaboration schemas, new knowledge)

• Complementing spatial & temporal gaps in fundamental data records with data from heritage 3rd parties missions

• Creating new data & knowledge from past data rescue & from harmonization & combination of old and new data

• Removing artificial barriers preventing the access that research & operational services require to all (old and new) EO data

Evolution of Long Term Data Preservation concept from provision of support to Global Change monitoring with past data towards enabling Earth Resources Management providing heritage data as a service to a global community of users

Data & Knowledge Digital Preservation: future approach at ESA

• Preserve ESA EO Heritage missions data & knowledge ensuring authenticity and understandability in the long term (Authority Entity).

With the assumption/awareness that one can never anticipate the exploitation value of the data asset in the future.

• Plan and Implement preservation activities in all EO mission phases to capture knowledge at EO data set generation.

• Establish a coordinated and harmonised approach across ESA and in cooperation with EO data owners in the MSs, to preserve European Space Science data.

• Prevent loss of non-ESA EO data at preservation risk and judged of European long-term interest.

Data Curation and Valorization: future approach at ESA

• Make sure the full content of the ESA EO heritage archives is maintained discoverable, accessible and usable in the long term through state of art technologies and innovative tools & services.

• Valorize ESA EO Heritage Data:

Ensure the full content of the ESA EO archives is fit for contemporary purpose thus enabling multi-disciplinary applications & broader data use.

Improve data quality through algorithms evolution, data reprocessing, data validation and traceability (QA4EO).

Build long time series of coherent data and data collections for specific applications.

In cooperation with other EO data owners and users in the Member States.

• Generate Fundamental Earth Observation Data Records based on the combination of archived data assets (heritage and current) from MSs National & ESA EO Missions, for land, marine, atmosphere, solid Earth and also climate research, to better address high priority societal challenges in Europe.

Providing new opportunities for European:

• Researchers/scientists making available a unique data asset as basis for their activities

• Policy makers to exploit research results to better address high priority societal challenges in Europe, and to take decisions / monitor impact in several application areas

• Value Adders and Service Providers to create & provide new services

• EO data providers to benefit from sharing of technologies, procedures, standard components and interfaces

• Service providers (e.g. archiving & reprocessing operators), development & technology industry (e.g. development of innovative services, tools, techniques and systems for information extraction), and data experts & support laboratories (e.g. support to data curation & valorization, algorithms evolution and data improvement)

Distribution of functions and variety of activities will ensure that entities from all MSs will be able to contribute with specific competences (e.g. reinforcing existing industrial capability or building-up new specialized one).

Future EO Data Preservation and Valorisation Scenario Opportunities

• Preserve ESA scientific data assets and knowledge for the long term safeguarding MSs investments done over the years to develop, launch and operate missions in different fields of science.

• Support to “EO Science Strategy for ESA” objectives and “EO-Innovation Europe” concept through making accessible “Curated & Valorised” ESA Heritage EO data and Fundamental Data Records.

• Support and enable ESA & MSs exploitation programmes & international initiatives (e.g. UNFCCC, GEOSS, CEOS Initiatives, Climate Change Initiative) and capability to maximize scientific & societal return.

• Expand EO data user base.

• Favour international cooperation and interoperability through definition and development of standard systems, components and interfaces:

o Improving operations & maintenance cost effectiveness

Future EO Data Preservation and Valorisation Scenario Impacts and Benefits

ESA UNCLASSIFIED – For Official Use

Way forward: Long Term Data Preservation & Mission to Heritage Data Programme (LTDP+)

Why: ESA heritage science data assets (growing) holdings represent a unique, valuable, independent and strategic resource owned by ESA MS.

In cooperation across ESA Directorates and with science data owners and users in MSs through a cooperative, harmonised and shared approach

Long Term Data Preservation (LTDP)

• Secure preservation of ESA

scientific heritage data assets and their associated information

• Prevent loss of data from

(non-ESA) missions at preservation risk and judged of European interest

Mission to Heritage Data (M2HD)

• Ensure accessibility to users relying on latest ICT as expected by users

• Ensure continuous quality improvement of EO heritage data for continuity with current & future missions for multi-disciplinary applications and broader data use

• Generation and management of Fundamental EO Data

Records (Level-1) using ESA and MSs National archived data complemented with current ones, to better respond to societal challenges

Long Term Data Preservation & Mission to Heritage Data (LTDP+)

Envisat ERS-1/-2 European assets from Landsat, ALOS, AVHRR, etc… GOCE [2017-2021]

Thank you for your attention !!!

LTDP+

“Valorize the past being inspired by the present to better shape the future: from Earth Observation towards Earth

Resources Management”

Contacts: Mirko.Albani@esa.int