Big Earth Sciences and the new 'Platform Economy'

<p>Poster presented at the European Space Agency (ESA) "Big Data from Space (BiDS)" conference, November 12th-14th, 2014.</p> <p>Final paper published in the Conference Proceedings. The e-proceedings will appear in the JRC conference proceedings series.</p> <p>Abstract:</p> <p>We present here the Cloud Platform Operations conducted by Terradue for serving Earth Sciences practitioners in deploying scalable data processing applications, and for helping them make extensive use of Earth observations (EO) data. The associated business model is based on several enablers that pertain to the new born ‘platform economy’, and are applied to the earth sciences domain.</p> <p>Performances analysis embedded in the daily operations, combined to a cost effective software development environment on the Cloud, are enablers for creating trustworthy partnerships on the Platform, with two-sided networks involving Open Science practices and Business-to- Business agreements to deliver innovative EO services. </p

EAST-WEST and VERTICAL deformation maps of Alto Tiberina Fault supersite: The Post-Proc service in Geohazard Exploitation Platform applied to Sentinel-1 dataset

In the framework of the ESA funded project “MEMpHIS - Multi Scale and Multi Hazard Mapping Space based Solutions ”, the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV) together with TRE-ALTAMIRA, generated the EAST-WEST and VERTICAL deformation maps of Alto Tiberina Fault supersite. The two maps of ground velocity were derived thanks to the adoption of a specific tool named "Post-Proc", implemented in MEMPHIS and with the support of Terradue, that is able to automatically re-project on the east-west and vertical directions the ascending and descending InSAR time series. In particular, the output refers to the deformation maps calculated by processing with SqueeSAR (TM) method, a large dataset acquired by the ESA Sentinel-1 mission. The Post-Proc tool also calculates the mean accelerations associated to each persistent scatterer in the scenes. Some additional features are also available from this tool: - Change the coherence threshold for selecting a subset of persistent scatterers - Activate a geometrical distortion filter to take into account the layover and foreshortening effects - Change the reference point (position and coherence) - Choose between two types of accelerations: 2nd order model or velocity derivative - Choose among three different projection: east-west, vertical, and downslope. The present dataset is composed of the EAST-WEST and VERTICAL acceleration maps. The data are in shapefile format: for each record (PS) the topography, velocity, acceleration, and InSAR coherence is reported

From Copernicus Big Data to Big Information and Big Knowledge:A Demo from the Copernicus App Lab Project

Copernicus is the European program for monitoring the Earth. It consists of a set of complex systems that collect data from satellites and in-situ sensors, process this data and provide users with reliable and up-to-date information on a range of environmental and security issues. The data collected by Copernicus is made available freely following an open access policy. Information extracted from Copernicus data is disseminated to users through the Copernicus services which address six thematic areas: land, marine, atmosphere, climate, emergency and security. We present a demo from the Horizon 2020 Copernicus App Lab project which takes big data from the Copernicus land service, makes it available on the Web as linked geospatial data and interlinks it with other useful public data to aid the development of applications by developers that might not be Earth Observation experts. Our demo targets a scenario where we want to study the "greenness" of Paris

A radar observation operator for high resolution non hydrostatic numerical weather prevision.

In order to specify an observation operator for radar reflectivities for the next numerical weather prediction model of Météo-France, a radar simulator was implemented in the research model Meso-NH. This tool was made up of building blocks that each describe a particular physical process (scattering, beam bending, etc.). Sensitivity experiments were carried out using different configurations for the modules. They allowed to specify an observation operator as a compromise between accuracy and computing constraints

A Radar Simulator for High-Resolution Nonhydrostatic Models

International audienceA full radar simulator for high-resolution (1–5 km) nonhydrostatic models has been developed within the research nonhydrostatic mesoscale atmospheric (Meso-NH) model. This simulator is made up of building blocks, each of which describes a particular physical process (scattering, beam bending, etc.). For each of these blocks, several formulations have been implemented. For instance, the radar simulator offers the possibility to choose among Rayleigh, Rayleigh–Gans, Mie, or T-matrix scattering methods, and beam bending can be derived from an effective earth radius or can depend on the vertical gradient of the refractive index of air. Moreover, the radar simulator is fully consistent with the microphysical parameterizations used by the atmospheric numerical model. Sensitivity experiments were carried out using different configurations for the simulator. They permitted the specification of an observation operator for assimilation of radar reflectivities by high-resolution nonhydrostatic numerical weather prediction systems, as well as for their validation. A study of the flash flood of 8–9 September 2002 in southeastern France, which was well documented with volumetric data from an S-band radar, serves to illustrate the capabilities of the radar simulator as a validation tool for a mesoscale model

The implementation of the Open Access paradigm to the EC-FP7 MED-SUV (Mediterranean Supersite Volcanoes) project

Trabajo presentado en la EGU General Assembly 2016 (European Geosciences Union), celebrada en Viena del 17 al 22 de abril de 2016.The overall goal of the EC-FP7 Mediterranean Supersite Volcanoes (MED-SUV) project is to apply the rationale of the Supersites GEO initiative to Campi Flegrei/Vesuvius and Mt. Etna to reduce the volcanic risk, by improving the understanding of the underlying geophysical processes, through the integration and sharing of the in-situ and Earth Observation (EO) data sets and the implementation of new instruments and monitoring systems. The project involves 24 EU and no-EU partners, including research and academic institutions, space agencies and SMEs. In this framework, the application of the Open Access paradigm has offered the opportunity to study and apply practical solutions concerning the data management (i.e. data polices, foreground exploitation and sustainability), intellectual property rights (i.e. ownership, licences, agreements) and technical issues (i.e. design and implementation of an interoperability e-infrastructure, access systems, etc.). This contribution presents pro and cons encountered in the project, as well as the main outcomes of the implementation of the Open Access to the Italian Supersites. This experience will be exploited in the building of international research infrastructures, such as EPOS, and the outcomes of the project will contribute to foster the Open Access to the research data in a wide context, as the GEO-GEOSS framework.Peer reviewe

The AROME-WMED reanalyses of the first special observation period of the Hydrological cycle in the Mediterranean experiment (HyMeX)

International audienceTo study key processes of the water cycle, two special observation periods (SOPs) of the Hydrological cycle in the Mediterranean experiment (HyMeX) took place during the autumn 2012 and winter 2013. The first SOP aimed to study high precipitation systems and flash-flooding in the Mediterranean area. The AROME-WMED (West-Mediterranean) model (Fourrié et al., 2015) is a dedicated version of the mesoscale Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) AROME-France model 5 which covers the western Mediterranean basin providing the HyMeX operational centre with daily real-time analyses and forecasts. These products allowed adequate decision-making for the field campaign observation deployment and the instrument operation. Shortly after the end of the campaign, a first re-analysis with more observations was performed with the first SOP operational software. An ensuing comprehensive second re-analysis of the first SOP which included field research observations (not assimilated in real-time), and some reprocessed observation datasets, was made with AROME-WMED. Moreover, a more recent version of the AROME model was used with updated background error statistics for the assimilation process. This paper depicts the main differences between the real-time version and the benefits brought by HyMeX re-analyses with AROME-WMED. The first re-analysis used 9 % of additional data and the second one 24 % more compared to the real-time version. The second re-analysis is found to be closer to observations than the previous AROME-WMED analyses. The second re-analysis forecast errors of surface parameters are reduced up to the 18-h or 24-h forecast range. In the mid and in the upper troposphere, upper-level fields are also improved up to the 48-h forecast range when compared to radiosondes. Integrated Water Vapour comparisons indicate a positive benefit for at least 24 hours. Precipitation forecasts are found to be improved with the second re-analysis for a thresholds up to 10 mm/24-h. For higher thresholds, the frequency bias is degraded. Finally, improvement brought by the second re-analysis is illustrated with the Intensive Observation Period (IOP 8) associated with heavy precipitation over Eastern Spain and South of France