Periodic Reporting for period 1 - KEPLER (Key Environmental monitoring for Polar Latitudes and European Readiness)
Période du rapport: 2019-01-01 au 2021-06-30
KEPLER is a multi-partner initiative, built around the operational European Ice Services and Copernicus information providers, that has prepared a roadmap for Copernicus to deliver an improved European capacity for monitoring and forecasting the Polar Regions.
Our motivation is to put the public and stakeholders at the centre of Copernicus. This follows the recommendations of the ‘Copernicus User Uptake’ review, and its 4 themes of:
● Raising awareness for the Copernicus programme,
● Informing and educating Copernicus users,
● Engaging Copernicus users in public and private sector, and
● Enabling access to Copernicus data and information.
These well tailored themes form the core components of KEPLER. However, as the Polar Regions are changing, so too are the challenges and opportunities. Because of these shifts we have included two additional themes that encompass the evolving needs. These are needed to provide opportunities for better understanding the environment, research opportunities, establishing new industry sectors and startups, and importantly empowering citizens:
● Identification of research gaps regarding integration/assimilation, and
● Improved sea-ice mapping and forecasting.
Through these 6 themes KEPLER addressed how to release the full potential of Polar Regions Earth Observation, including from ESA and EUMETSAT, and identified the barriers that impede the use of the tremendous resource that is Copernicus and require eliminating. This combines 2 key elements of the call:
a) bringing together key European stakeholders and competent Entities
b) growing the Copernicus brand and user-base through providing enhanced scientific and technical support.
KEPLER provides a mechanism that enables the broad range of Polar Regions stakeholders to be equipped with the most accurate and relevant environmental information so that they can seize the many benefits that Copernicus products generate for society and economy.
Our motivation is to put the public and stakeholders at the centre of Copernicus. This follows the recommendations of the ‘Copernicus User Uptake’ review, and its 4 themes of:
● Raising awareness for the Copernicus programme,
● Informing and educating Copernicus users,
● Engaging Copernicus users in public and private sector, and
● Enabling access to Copernicus data and information.
These well tailored themes form the core components of KEPLER. However, as the Polar Regions are changing, so too are the challenges and opportunities. Because of these shifts we have included two additional themes that encompass the evolving needs. These are needed to provide opportunities for better understanding the environment, research opportunities, establishing new industry sectors and startups, and importantly empowering citizens:
● Identification of research gaps regarding integration/assimilation, and
● Improved sea-ice mapping and forecasting.
Through these 6 themes KEPLER addressed how to release the full potential of Polar Regions Earth Observation, including from ESA and EUMETSAT, and identified the barriers that impede the use of the tremendous resource that is Copernicus and require eliminating. This combines 2 key elements of the call:
a) bringing together key European stakeholders and competent Entities
b) growing the Copernicus brand and user-base through providing enhanced scientific and technical support.
KEPLER provides a mechanism that enables the broad range of Polar Regions stakeholders to be equipped with the most accurate and relevant environmental information so that they can seize the many benefits that Copernicus products generate for society and economy.
KEPLER’s key findings are that existing, long-held, user requirements have not been appropriately addressed, and that there is scope for future improvement to intensify user uptake. This has the potential to be delivered with new satellite Earth Observing capabilities, such as the Copernicus Expansion Missions, coming online in the later half of the decade. Greater inclusion and support for in situ monitoring efforts, including Citizen Science initiatives, can provide a greater sense of ‘ownership’ of Copernicus by European citizens. Greater focus must be placed on utilising the many resources both inside and outside of Copernicus to provide stronger oversight and quality assurance of data products and information. By doing so Copernicus will ensure that these products continue to be relevant and fit-for-purpose to allow informed decisions both today and in the future, and promote the accelerated uptake of new research and technological developments coming out of Horizon Europe. It was found that terminologies within Copernicus differ from internationally accepted practise, which causes confusion.
KEPLER developed a strategic vision, which we call a roadmap, for Copernicus to deliver an improved European capacity for monitoring and forecasting the Polar Regions aiming for an operational integration of all relevant European capacities. This takes into account existing capabilities from within the Copernicus Services, and from outside expertise. Importantly, the requirements of end-users and stakeholders living and working in, or supplying Downstream Services has been central to the evaluation with the approach being essential for ensuring that Copernicus evolves into a monitoring programme that is relevant and delivers the necessary information to tackle the issues facing European actors in the Polar Regions, including climate change monitoring and prediction, waste/pollution management, the safe and efficient navigation in ice-infested waters and in avoidance of environmental hazards on land. By doing so the Copernicus services can continue to provide the information that is needed to help facilitate the transition towards a low carbon economy.
The KEPLER roadmap addresses the above mentioned challenges and moves us towards a comprehensive European end-to-end operational system by improving design aspects, such as the set of required observations, and the potential inclusion of prior information to better constrain sparsely observed areas/variables. It suggests strategies to close gaps in our current forecasting capabilities, and ways to develop and sustain the observing system.
The KEPLER roadmap addresses the above mentioned challenges and moves us towards a comprehensive European end-to-end operational system by improving design aspects, such as the set of required observations, and the potential inclusion of prior information to better constrain sparsely observed areas/variables. It suggests strategies to close gaps in our current forecasting capabilities, and ways to develop and sustain the observing system.