ESA’s first-ever Earth Observation Commercialisation Forum is taking place at ESA Headquarters in Paris. Investors, institutions, entrepreneurs and companies of any size from the EO sector are coming together to discuss the commercial potential and challenges of Earth observation, together with the technical, industrial and risk-capital support available to European companies. Register here.
The ESA InCubed programme has granted co-funding to AIRMO, enabling the German company to develop MicroLIDAR, a satellite with a greenhouse-gas detection payload. MicroLIDAR will allow companies, particularly in the oil and gas sector, to monitor emissions and leaks at their facilities in order to take appropriate action.
We Make Future is at the Rimini Expo Centre in Italy. WMF is an all-encompassing annual event on digital, technological and social innovation. The gathering includes speakers, exhibitions, a B2B meeting area and a start-up competition. Φ-lab is there with its own stand full of exhibits, and Head of the Φ-lab Explore Office Pierre Philippe Mathieu is giving a speech.
The ESP Forum on AI and EO discusses how the intersection of these two disciplines can create new opportunities for ESA EO activities and assets. The virtual event is organised by ESA Φ-lab together with Oxford University and Trillium.
The General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU) is at the Austria Center Vienna. Φ-labber Rochelle Schneider dos Santos is chairing a session on Digital Twins of the Earth, alongside representatives from NASA, ECMWF and CNES.
Φ-lab, in collaboration with ECMWF, has an exciting opportunity for an ESA PostDoc research fellowship in Machine Learning for Earth Observation and Prediction (ML4EOP). The successful candidate will exploit the use of innovative EO-based solutions to enhance climate change resilience, with the potential for a second contract with ECMWF if the outcome is successful. Closing date: 12 May 2023.
Thales Alenia Space Italy will develop microDRCE (Digital Radar Central Electronics for Microsatellites) under InCubed co-funding. This highly flexible product will implement all the standard data acquisition modes as part of a configurable SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) sub-150-kg satellite constellation.
ESA Φ-lab and We Make Future have got together to launch the AI4EO call. The initiative is aimed at supporting applications of AI in Earth observation and aerospace, with a focus on highlighting the importance of these sectors for economic and cultural development and the protection of terrestrial ecosystems. Closing date: 5 May.
The OrbitalAI Challenge has been launched. This two-track competition gives participants the chance to explore the cutting-edge possibilities of in-orbit data processing and its potential to drive progress in Earth’s sustainability, business, industry and science. One track is based on ESA’s Φ-sat-2 mission and the other on a smart imaging system to be installed externally on the ISS in collaboration with Thales and Microsoft.
The first InCubed thematic call has been launched on the topic of Cultural and Natural Heritage. Companies are invited to submit promising business ideas for developing EO-related products and services that address challenges in this domain, with a particular focus on coastal areas. Deadline: 31 March 2023.
Beyond Gravity Sweden has signed an InCubed contract for co-funding the development of RoccS, a commercial radio occultation data service. Based on a GRAS-2 sensor on ESA’s MetOp-SG constellation, RoccS will sell atmospheric data to customers in the fields of weather forecasting and climate monitoring.
Spire is about to launch its PROGRES.lu Polarimetric Radio Occultation payload on a 3U-cubesat test mission. Supported by co-funding from InCubed and the Luxembourg Space Agency, PROGRES.lu collects data on rain patterns and aims to enhance the value and accuracy of global weather forecasts.
Giuseppe Borghi, Head of Φ-lab, is speaking at the NSE New Space Economy ExpoForum in Rome.
Danish company DHI has received support from InCubed for the SiteObserver activity. This service will provide satellite-based surveillance for offshore wind farms, including data on seabed and coastal dynamics, vessel traffic, turbine direction and sedimentation patterns.
ESA Ministerial Council in Paris.
Finnish company ReOrbit has signed a contract with InCubed for co-funding the UKKO activity, the first phase of a programme for developing flight software and avionics for autonomous satellites. The intended customers are satellite manufacturers and operators in the EO and communications segments.
Φ-lab@Sweden Kickoff – Machine Learning Onboard Spacecraft workshop.
Φ-lab is at the WebSummit event in Lisbon. If you are attending, pass by to discover more about our activities at stand E419 in Pavilion 4.