earth online
  • All Categories (1627)
  • Data (7)
  • News (7)
  • Missions (4)
  • Events (2)
  • Tools (2)
  • Activities (2)
  • Documents (1603)
  • News - General News

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    ESA's improved Earth system data records: what is in store for the future?

    Fundamental Data Records (FDRs) are instrumental in advancing our understanding of Earth systems and for addressing societal challenges effectively. These long-term records contain uncertainty-quantified, calibrated and geo-located multi-instrument/multi-platform satellite sensor data spanning several decades to support climate-related applications.

  • Document - Newsletter

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    Earth Online Newsletter - 08 March 2024

    This issue of the Earth Online Newsletter covers a selection of the latest news and events from ESA.

  • News - Data Release news

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    FDR4ALT - ESA unveils new cutting-edge ERS/Envisat Altimeter and Microwave Radiometer Datasets

    The European Space Agency (ESA) has developed a comprehensive suite of innovative Earth system data records as part of the Fundamental Data Records for Altimetry project - FDR4ALT.

  • News - Success Stories

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    ESA missions help to reveal worldwide lake water loss trend

    Climate change, human consumption and sedimentation are depleting more than half of the world’s biggest lakes of water, according to a ground-breaking analysis that drew on three decades of satellite data.

  • Data - Announcement of Opportunity (Restrained)

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    Announcement of Opportunity for S3VT (Sentinel-3 Validation Team)

    In the framework of a Copernicus collaborative agreement ESA and EUMETSAT invite interested groups and individuals to support the Sentinel-3 Validation Team (S3VT).

  • News - Thematic area articles

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    Transforming space data into climate action

    ESA’s Earth observation activities are playing a key role in the revitalised global drive to combat climate change.

  • News - Success Stories

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    How Envisat helped to shape global understanding of Earth’s systems

    Twenty years have passed since a ground-breaking European spacecraft designed to deliver unprecedented insight into the planet’s changing environment was lofted into orbit.

  • Activity - Projects

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    Dragon 2 Cooperation Programme

    The Dragon 2 Programme focussed on the exploitation of ESA, ESA's Third Party Missions and Chinese Earth observation data for science and applications development in land, ocean and atmospheric applications.

  • News - Success Stories

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    ERS Heritage Data allow for 30 years of science

    At their time of launch thirty years ago, the two ERS satellites were the most sophisticated Earth observation spacecraft ever developed and launched by Europe.

  • Tools - Apps

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    Heritage Missions app for iOS

    Download the Heritage Missions application to discover what the missions were about, how it worked and what the elements of the space and ground segment that make these missions unique.

  • Tools - Apps

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    Heritage Missions app for Android

    Download the Heritage Missions application to discover what the missions were about, how it worked and what the elements of the space and ground segment that make these missions unique.

  • Mission - Copernicus Sentinels

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    Copernicus Sentinel-3

    Copernicus Sentinel-3 is an European Earth Observation satellite mission developed to support Copernicus ocean, land, atmospheric, emergency, security and cryospheric applications.

  • News - Infographics

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    Envisat - ESA's versatile Earth observation satellite

    Learn more about ESA's Envisat mission - the largest Earth observation satellite ever built - in a new infographic.

  • Data - Fast Registration with immediate access (Open)

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    Envisat RA-2 Geophysical Data Record - GDR [RA2_GDR__2P]

    This is a RA-2 Geophysical Data Record (GDR) Full Mission Reprocessing (FMR) V3 product containing radar range and orbital altitude, wind speed, wave height, water vapour from the MWR and geophysical corrections. This FMR follows the first Envisat Altimetry reprocessing Version (V2.1) completed in 2012. The GDR and S-GDR data products were reprocessed for all cycles from 6 to 113 (May 2002 to April 2012) into a homogeneous standard in NetCDF format (close to Sentinel-3). For many aspects, the V3.0 reprocessed data are better than the previous dataset: In terms of available and valid data, the coverage is better, notably thanks to a better availability of MWR data at the beginning of the mission In terms of performance at cross-overs, the quality is improved: the annual signal and average of Mean SSH is decreased, as well as the standard deviation The new MWR characteristics were shown to improve largely the global quality of data. As well as the new tide model, the new MSS and the new orbit standard The Global and regional Mean Sea Level trend is very weakly impacted though the effort was put, this time, on the mesoscale restitution, rather than long term drift, as during V2.1 reprocessing. Please consult the Envisat RA-2/MWR Product Quality Readme file PDF before using the data.

  • Data - Fast Registration with immediate access (Open)

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    Envisat RA-2 Sensor and Geophysical Data Record - SGDR [RA2_MWS__2P]

    This is a RA-2 Sensor and Geophysical Data Record (SGDR) Full Mission Reprocessing (FMR) V3 product. This FMR follows the first Envisat Altimetry reprocessing Version (V2.1) completed in 2012. The GDR and S-GDR data products were reprocessed for all cycles from 6 to 113 (May 2002 to April 2012) into a homogeneous standard in NetCDF format (close to Sentinel-3). The Sensor Data Record (SGDR) Product from RA-2/MWR includes the data in the GDR product (RA-2 geophysical data, MWR data) and also RA-2 averaged waveforms (18Hz) and RA-2 individual waveforms (1800Hz). This product is a continuation of ERS RA data. This data product has a coverage of 1 pass and pole to pole, a spatial sampling of about 390 m along track and a size of 31 to 40 MB, depending on presence of individual waveforms. The radiometric accuracy is 0.2 dB and auxiliary data include: Orbit state vectors (DORIS, FOS), RA2 and MWR characterisation data, Platform attitude, Gain calibration, USO frequency, ECMWF data, time relation, leap second, Ionospheric corrections, geoid, mean sea surface, slope data, and tide model (ocean, earth, loading, pole). Please consult the Envisat RA-2/MWR Product Quality Readme file before using the data.

  • Data - Data Service Request (Restrained)

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    ERS-1/2 SAR IM L0 [SAR_IM__0P]

    This SAR Level 0 product is acquired in Image Mode. The products consist of the SAR telemetry data and are supplied as standard scenes. It also contains all the required auxiliary data necessary for data processing. The product serves two main purposes: For testing ERS SAR processors independently from the HDDR system For users interested in full SAR data processing. Product characteristics: Scene area: 100 km (range - across track) x full segment length (azimuth - along track) Scene size: 5616 samples (range) x full segment length (azimuth) Pixel depth: 10 bits signed integer (5 bits I, 5 bits Q) Projection: Slant range.

  • Data - EO Sign In Authentication (Open)

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    ERS-1/2 SAR IM Medium Resolution L1 [SAR_IMM_1P]

    This ERS Medium Resolution stripline product is generated from the Image Mode Level 0 Product. Stripline image products contain image data for an entire segment, up to a maximum size of 10 minutes per product for IM mode. The processor concatenates together several sub-images called "slices" that were processed separately on a dataset-by-dataset basis in order to form the entire stripline image. The product is processed to an approximately 150 m x 150 m resolution and has a radiometric resolution that is good enough for ice applications. This product has a lower spatial resolution than the SAR_IMP_1P and SAR_IMS_1P products. Product Characteristics: Pixel size: 5 m (ground range – across track) x 75 m (azimuth – along track) Scene area: 100 km (range) x at least 102.5 km Scene Size: 1300 pixels (range) x at least 1350 lines (azimuth) Pixel depth: 16 bits unsigned integer- Total product volume: at least 3.5 MB Projection: Ground-range Number of looks: 8 (azimuth) x 7 (range).

  • Data - EO Sign In Authentication (Open)

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    ERS-1/2 SAR IM Single Look Complex L1 [SAR_IMS_1P]

    The SAR SLC product is a single look complex acquired in Image Mode. It is a digital image, with slant range and phase preserved, generated from raw SAR data using up-to-date auxiliary parameters. The products are intended for use in SAR quality assessment, calibration and interferometric applications. A minimum number of corrections and interpolations are performed on the data. Absolute calibration parameters (when available) are provided in the product annotation. Product characteristics: Pixel size: 8 m (range - across track) x 4 m (azimuth - along track – varying slightly depending on acquisition Pulse Repetition Frequency) Scene area: 100 km (range) x at least 102.5 km (azimuth) Scene size: 5000 samples (range) x at least 30000 lines (azimuth) Pixel depth: 32 bits signed integer (16 bits I, 16 bits Q) Total product volume: 575 MB Projection: Slant range- Number of looks: 1.

  • Data - EO Sign In Authentication (Open)

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    ERS-1/2 SAR IM Precision L1 [SAR_IMP_1P]

    The SAR Precision product is a multi-look (speckle-reduced), ground range image acquired in Image Mode. This product type is most applicable to users interested in remote sensing applications, but is also suitable for calibration purposes. The products are calibrated and corrected for the SAR antenna pattern and range-spreading loss. Radar backscatter can be derived from the products for geophysical modelling, but no correction is applied for terrain-induced radiometric effects. The images are not geocoded, and terrain distortion (foreshortening and layover) has not been removed. The numbering sequence relates to the satellite position and therefore differs between Ascending and Descending scenes. Product characteristics: Pixel size: 12.5 m (range - across track) x 12.5 m (azimuth - along track) Scene area: 100 km (range) x at least 102.5 km (azimuth) Scene size: 8000 pixels range x at least 8200 lines (azimuth) Pixel depth: 16 bits unsigned integer Total product volume: 125 MB Projection: Ground-range Number of looks: 3.