Dont miss the Earth Explorer 12 User Consultation Meeting
The countdown is on for scientists, researchers and Earth observation experts eager to help shape the future of the European Space Agency's Earth Explorer satellite series. Registration is closing soon for the Earth Explorer 12 User Consultation Meeting.
This all-important event offers the opportunity to be part of the discussion on which of four pioneering candidate missions should advance to the next stage of development.
Taking place in Tallinn, Estonia, on 7–8 July 2026, the two-day meeting will bring together the Earth observation science community to examine and debate the strengths of the four concepts competing to be the twelfth Earth Explorer mission: CryoRad, ECO, Hydroterra+ and Keystone.
Registration closes on 24 June.
Initially selected in April 2024, each concept has undergone a rigorous assessment process culminating in the publication of detailed assessment reports.
CryoRad would target polar regions and their processes, namely the acceleration of ice sheet mass loss, the reduction of sea-ice thickness and the freshening of the Arctic Ocean. The mission would provide low-frequency passive microwave measurements from 0.4 to 2 GHz that allow the estimation of geophysical variables such as ice-sheet temperature profiles down to the bedrock.
Read: CryoRad report for mission assessment
ECO would resolve the global radiation budget. The mission would provide radiation measurements using a satellite constellation combining Sun and Earth radiometers, and wide-field visible and infrared imagers. It will enable the derivation of Earth's Energy Imbalance, a diagnostic variable for our climate.
Read: ECO report for mission assessment
Hydroterra+ would address rapid processes tied to the water cycle over land and to extreme events over Europe, the Mediterranean and northern Africa. The radar mission would be placed in geostationary orbit. From this fixed position above the equator, the satellite's C-band synthetic aperture radar would deliver data products multiple times a day.
Read: Hydroterra+ report for mission assessment
Keystone would target the whole-atmosphere chemistry-climate system in the region from 50 km to 250 km. The mission would deliver measurements from a limb-sounding instrument across the Terahertz, infrared and UV-visible spectral range. It would deliver observations of atomic oxygen, other trace gases, temperature and wind.
Read: Keystone report for mission assessment
The family of Earth Explorer research missions are pivotal to ESA's FutureEO programme. Since the successful launch of the first Earth Explorer in 2009, this extraordinary family of missions, without exception, keep on surpassing expectations.
They continue to demonstrate how breakthrough technology can deliver an astounding range of scientific findings about our planet. Their robust technology leads to many being extended way beyond their planned life in orbit and they gain ever-growing user communities through their scientific excellence and open and free data policy.
The Earth science community is an integral part of the Earth Explorers and the User Consultation Meetings are a crucial milestone in their selection process. Held after years of scientific and technical studies and the publication of detailed reports, they bring the community together to evaluate the strengths of candidate missions and help shape the recommendation as to which concept should move forward.
Be part of the process by attending the Earth Explorer 12 User Consultation Meeting and contribute to the future of this pioneering series of satellite missions.
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