TerraWatch Space

The latest edition of the TerraWatch Space newsletter is live containing news, analysis and insights on Earth observation. In this edition: Multi-Source Data for GHG Emission Monitoring, EO Adoption Strategy and Hurricane Damage https://lnkd.in/erNuVaXu

Financing is tough at the moment for Earth observation companies. Finance, insurance, and EO leaders from Barclays, Citi, Descartes Underwriting, Floodbase, and Earth Daily Analytics take the pulse of a changing market from in this feature. https://lnkd.in/eeHKJssb

One thing I don't talk about much publicly is the work TerraWatch Space has done over the last couple of years working with over 40 end-user organisations - including some Fortune 500 firms - advising and building an Earth observation adoption strategy. Organisations we have worked with include small and large enterprises in finance, insurance, agriculture, forestry, energy, mining, sustainability etc. as well as governments and non-profits. If you are an organisation looking to learn more about using/scaling EO and would like an objective and independent assessment centred on reality (not hype), get in touch!

The latest edition of the TerraWatch Space newsletter is live containing news, analysis and insights on Earth observation. In this edition: Monitoring the Structure of Clouds, Global Heating, Thoughts on the State of EO and a Non-Exhaustive List of EO Jobs. https://lnkd.in/eu2W9uty

If you missed attending EO Summit a couple of weeks back, here is an excellent piece from Mark Holmes from Via Satellite that summarises: i) the outlook for the EO market from major players, including quotes from Massimiliano Vitale of Planet, Awais Ahmed of Pixxel, Jarkko Antila of Kuva Space and Eric von Eckartsberg of EarthDaily Analytics, ii) insights from the EO Investments and Growth panel, discussing the reality of the EO market, including quotes from Marc Robins of Barclays and Martina Ecker of Citi, iii) the potential of EO in the Insurance and Finance market including quotes from Vania Hernandez Bello of Descartes Underwriting, Subit Chakrabarti of Floodbase and Nataliya Tkachenko, PhD of Lloyds Banking Group. Unlike conferences that just focus on the hype of EO, I am very proud that EO Summit was able to go beyond that and reflect on the actual challenges of commercial EO adoption while also presenting some operational, real-world use cases of EO across various industries. https://lnkd.in/eyzV_bs9

There is a silent revolution going on in the weather world powered by AI. European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts has introduced the Artificial Intelligence Forecasting System (AIFS), a data-driven ensemble weather forecasting model, similar to those developed by Google, Huawei & NVIDIA. What's the big deal?👇 First some context. Weather forecasting models can be classified into two: deterministic and ensemble. Deterministic models provide a single forecast based on a given set of initial conditions of the atmosphere, for a specific location and time - essentially the 'best forecast' within the laws of physics. These are great for short-to-medium-term forecasts (7 days). While deterministic models can be really accurate due to the potential for high-resolution forecasts in the best-case scenario, they can also be way off especially due to the range of possible states of the atmosphere and the uncertainties associated with 'guessing' them. Enter ensemble models. Ensembles run many simulations accounting for all the uncertainty in the initial conditions of the atmosphere and, hence provide several possible results. These are great for medium-to-long-term forecasts (up to 2 weeks) esp. by comparing the results. Ensemble models (like AIFS) are inherently probabilistic - if 90% of the results predict heavy rain, there is high confidence in the forecast. Similarly, even if only 10% of the results predict a storm, it can facilitate early warning systems and support disaster management. Back to the ECMWF news, why is this a big deal? First, seeing a public-sector organisation keep up with the private sector advancements and continuously innovate is great. This is fundamentally important as I believe weather is a public good (free/open) and should always be. Second, it is amazing that the model and its source code will be open-source. This means that anyone in the weather community can use the AIFS model and identify strengths and weaknesses so that the forecasts become better and better. Finally, AI and weather forecasting are truly a match made in the atmosphere. With a given set of data and boundary conditions, the AI model is capable of generating hundreds to thousands of simulations which can help us forecast that disaster, that we may have missed before. This is important especially for climate adaptation plans, given the rise in frequency and/or intensity of natural disasters. I am excited about the possibility of having better early warning systems in the global south, which suffers more due to the lack of Wx infrastructure. Check out the announcement from ECMWF and the accompanying paper in the comments. For more demystification of Earth observation and its applications like weather, follow me and subscribe to the TerraWatch Space newsletter. PS. I had to simplify (and sometimes oversimplify) the concepts to make the narrative simple enough to be digestible. Feel free to add more information to complement this.

A big thank you to the generous sponsors, the amazing speakers, the thoughtful moderators and all the 375 attendees who made the event a grand success. EO Summit will be back, better and bigger in 2025. Stay tuned and follow this page for updates!

The latest edition of the TerraWatch Space newsletter is live containing news, analysis and insights on Earth observation. In this edition: Monitoring marine litter from space, Planet's integration of edge computing and mapping the ocean floors. https://lnkd.in/eAMmYsRD

Last week, the Open Cosmos team was glad to participate in the EO Summit, a premier Earth Observation Conference that brought together over 300 industry professionals. Our Business Development Manager, Martin Philp, was a key contributor to the Energy and Utilities session, delivering a compelling presentation titled "Navigating the Waves: Leveraging Earth Observation for Maritime Asset Monitoring". Martin's expertise in harnessing the power of Earth Observation for maritime asset monitoring resonated with the audience, highlighting the potential for innovative solutions in this field. We were honoured to sponsor this event and engage with the community and also grateful for the opportunity to share our knowledge and connect with like-minded individuals at the EO Summit! #OpenCosmos #EOSummit #EarthObservation

I am thrilled to have had the opportunity to present at the EO Summit in London. It was a fantastic experience to connect with so many talented professionals in the industry. A big congratulations to Aravind Ravichandran and the rest of the organizers for putting together such a successful event! Here are a few key conclusions for the Earth Observation sector from the summit: 1. Innovation is Key: The EO sector continues to thrive on cutting-edge technology and innovative approaches, driving the industry forward. 2. Collaboration Matters: Building partnerships across different sectors and disciplines is essential for addressing complex challenges and maximizing impact. 3. Sustainability Focus: There is a growing emphasis on sustainable practices and leveraging EO data to support environmental initiatives. 4. Data Integration: Integrating EO data with other data sources enhances decision-making and provides more comprehensive insights. Ground truth is still needed, but verifiers and certifiers need to adapt faster to sensor technology especially if it reduces uncertainty. Looking forward to the continued growth and evolution of the EO sector! #EOSummit #EarthObservation #Rabobank #Innovation #Sustainability