A centralised platform to boost access to Earth observation data
Satellite imagery and Earth observation (EO) data has huge potential to support a range of sectors, from agriculture to disaster relief. But its impact and commercial potential are limited by a fragmented ecosystem of different formats and interfaces, which users must stitch together themselves. “Accessing and exploiting all this information can be complex and time-consuming, especially for users without strong technical expertise,” says Álvaro Núñez Martínez, a satellite engineer at Spanish IT services firm GMV Aerospace and Defence(opens in new window). The LEONSEGS(opens in new window) project was launched to address this issue. “Our aim was to bring together different satellite data providers, ground segment services and processing capabilities into a single federated platform,” explains Núñez, who acted as the project’s technical lead. “Having a unified, automated and interoperable platform would simplify access to EO data, and support both service providers and end users.”
Intelligent semantic search capabilities
The project team built a centralised, user-friendly data processing platform capable of requesting, integrating and making sense of information from various EO providers. This platform is structured around two main components. The first is the Multi-mission Operations Control and Processing Service (MOCPS). This manages data from different satellite-related operations, carrying out automated activities such as requesting and processing specific data from a range of users, and downloading the information. The second component is the Automated Multi-mission Earth Observation Service (AMEOS), which performs intelligent searches across internal and external catalogues, retrieves the most suitable images, and generates final EO products. “This semantic search engine helps users find the most relevant imagery not only through traditional metadata, but also through more contextual and meaning-based queries,” notes Núñez. “All together, these components allow users to request data or services without needing to interact manually with multiple systems.”
Trials in vineyards and agricultural fields
The project’s approach was validated through real demonstrations on vineyards in Spain’s Ribera del Duero region, and agricultural fields in Lower Austria. These pilots involved retrieving historical imagery and requesting very high-resolution data from external providers. “We successfully integrated multiple EO data providers into a single federated ecosystem, and validated the semantic search engine,” remarks Núñez. “We also demonstrated the automated workflows covering satellite tasking, data retrieval, processing and product generation.” The LEONSEGS platform was able to produce agricultural indicators such as crop vigour, biomass, chlorophyll content and moisture levels using data from different missions and sensors.
Crop health, irrigation needs and drought conditions
The project team believe that the platform can benefit a wide range of end users. Farmers, vineyard owners and agronomists can use the generated products to monitor crop health, irrigation needs or vegetation conditions. Public agencies can benefit from improved tools for drought monitoring, land-use assessment or environmental surveillance. “Private commercial space operators can also use the platform to access ground-segment-as-a-service capabilities without having to build their own full infrastructure,” adds Núñez. The objective now is to continue expanding the federation of EO data providers, integrate additional satellites(opens in new window) and catalogues, and further improve the semantic retrieval and automation capabilities. “The longer-term goal is to evolve from a validated prototype towards a fully operational ecosystem capable of supporting real missions and commercial services, while enabling easier access to high-quality EO products for a broad range of users,” says Núñez.
