1. OGC Technical and Planning Committee Meeting Welcome
8th March 2010
ESA/ESRIN
M. Eugenia Forcada (European Space Agency, Earth Observation Directorate)

2. The ESRIN Establishment
Personnel on site
218 staff in:
Earth Observation field
Vega Department
Informatics
Telecommunications, Contracts, Site, Personnel, Communication
ASI Science Data Center
Over 410 contractors from European industry
+30 Young Graduate Trainees and research fellows
visitors in 2008
+60 international conferences per year 2

3. ESRIN is the lead centre for Earth observation
EO Payload Data Operations Centre of ESA
Multi-mission Ground Segment management
ERS and Envisat including Artemis reception
Earth Explorers
Third Party Missions
Earth science & application development
GMES Space Office
Charter management
Earthnet activities management
CEOS and GEO activities

4. EO User services, education
ESRIN manages the largest EO data archive of its kind in Europe
ESRIN acts as central access point for users of EO data worldwide: the UN, the European Commission, NGOs, universities, research institutes, local authorities, commercial entities
ESRIN provides access to a distributed ground segment
ESRIN is the centre of EO education
Matera Ground Station, Italy 4

5. The VEGA Small Launcher Programme
ESRIN : management centre for the VEGA small launcher programme managed by an integrated ESA / ASI / CNES team
VEGA : 0.3-2t satellites into polar and low-Earth orbits
helping European space industry to make access to space easier, quicker and cheaper
Maiden flight scheduled for end 2010

6. Further ESRIN Activities
Host centre of ESA’s Information Systems:
Corporate Business Applications
Corporate Information Technology Infrastructure
European Centre for Space Records
Telecommunication Multimedia Infrastructure & ESA Broadcast Service via Web
Incubators (agreement ESA – BIC Lazio)

7. Purpose of ESA
“To provide for and promote, for exclusively peaceful purposes, cooperation among European states in space research and technology and their space applications.”
Article 2 of
ESA Convention

8. ESA Activities ESA is one of the few space agencies in the world to
combine responsibility in all areas of space activity.
Space science
Human spaceflight
Exploration
Earth observation
Launchers
Navigation
Telecommunications
Technology
Operations

9. ESA Activities in ESRIN
ESA is one of the few space agencies in the world to
combine responsibility in all areas of space activity.
Space science
Human spaceflight
Exploration
Earth observation
Launchers
Navigation
Telecommunications
Technology
Operations

10. ESA facts and figures Over 30 years of experience 18 Member States
Five establishments, about staff
3 600 million Euro budget (2009)
Over 60 satellites designed and tested
More than 10 scientific satellites in operation
Five types of launcher developed
Over 180 launches made

11. EARTH OBSERVATION

12. Why EO ? Mean sea level rise

13. Why EO ? Global mean sea level rise
Courtesy of Remko Scharroo

14. Geostationary Meteorological Missions
From past to present
Earth
Explorers
Since 1978
1991
1995
2002
Meteosat
ERS 1
ERS 2
ENVISAT
Evolution of Objectives….
Beispiel Polare Eiskappen
ERS-ENVISAT-Cryosat Jahre of RA Daten
Sentinels /
GMES
Geostationary Meteorological Missions
+ Global Ozone
+ Soil Science
Oceans
Cryosphere
Soil Science
Climatology
+ Ocean colour
+ Atmospheric constituents

15. EO missions handled by ESA
Since
1977
Earthnet: European access to non-ESA missions: Landsat, SeaWifs, NOAA, JERS, MODIS, ALOS, Proba, Bird, Scisat...
European users
Meteo
METEOSAT Second Generation MSG-1, -2, -3
METEOSAT M-1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
in cooperation
with EUMETSAT
METOP-1, -2, -3
Cryosat 2
(Polar Ice Monitoring)
Science
to better understand the Earth
(Gravity and Ocean
Circulation Explorer)
GOCE
SMOS (Soil moisture)
Earth
Explorers
ADM/Aeolus
(Atmospheric Dynamics)
Explain Data Policy
EarthCARE
(Clouds, Aerosol & Radiation)
SWARM
(Magnetic)
ERS-1, -2
ENVISAT
Applications
Services
long term monitoring systems and services
GMES
Sentinel 1
(SAR imaging)
Sentinel 2
(Multispectral)
Sentinel 3
(Ocean global monit)
Sentinel 4
(Atmospheric)
Sentinel 5

16. With wider participation as necessary
Ground Segment Coordination Body: joining forces to Standardise EO access
Members: Agencies in ESA member states investing in and managing Earth Observation Payload Data Ground Segments
Established in June 2005
Shares the respective expertise in the development and operations of Payload Data Ground Segments of EO missions
GSCM Members
All design and develop EO ground segments using public programmes and funds (of some 300M/Y)
Sub groups for dedicated subjects e.g. Standardisation of access to EO data (HMA)
With wider participation as necessary

17. Thank you !
ESA desires you a fruitful meeting