Annex B - CEOS involvement in IGOS

The IGOS Partnership

The Integrated Global Observing Strategy Partnership (IGOS-P) was established in June 1998 by a formal exchange of letters among the 13 founding Partners for the definition, development and implementation of the Integrated Global Observing Strategy (IGOS). The principal objectives of the IGOS are to address how well user requirements are being met by the existing mix of observations, including those of the global observing systems, and how they could be met in the future through better integration and optimisation of remote sensing (especially space-based) and in situ systems.

The IGOS serves as guidance to those responsible for defining and implementing individual observing systems. Implementation of the Strategy, ie the establishment and maintenance of the components of an integrated global observing system, lies with those governments and organisations that have made relevant commitments, for example, within the governing councils of the observing systems' sponsors. To aid the development of the Strategy, the Partners have adopted an incremental ‘Themes’ approach based on perceived priorities.

The IGOS brings together the major Earth and space-based systems for global environmental observations of the atmosphere, oceans and land in a strategic planning process, in order to facilitate the necessary harmonisation and achieve maximum cost-effectiveness for the total set of observations. The relevant observing systems encompass a broad range of different networks of satellite-borne and Earth-based sensors, including ocean buoys, weather stations and atmospheric radiosondes. IGOS recognises that many of these observing systems are in need of improvements, some lack the necessary long-term continuity, and all require strengthened links between the space-based and Earth-based components, as well as between the observing programmes and the processes of scientific and environmental policy-making which define the information priorities.

Membership

The IGOS-P brings together the efforts of a number of international bodies concerned with the observational component of global environmental issues, both from a research and a long-term operational programme perspective. The partners are:

• the Global Observing Systems: Within the last decade, the Global Observing System of the World Weather Watch (WWW/GOS) and the Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) have been complemented by the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) and the Global Terrestrial Observing System (GTOS) to produce a set of Global Observing Systems integrating in-situ and remotely sensed data, with each focusing on a major component of the Earth system. The Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) has also been planned and initiated to integrate the observing needs for climate purposes;
• the international agencies which sponsor the Global Observing Systems: The Global Observing Systems are sponsored by a number of international agencies: Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), International Council for Science (ICSU), Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC-UNESCO), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and World Meteorological Organization (WMO);
• the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS): CEOS coordinates the efforts of space agencies worldwide in the planning of Earth observation satellite missions and their applications;
• the International Group of Funding Agencies for Global Change Research (IGFA): National research funding agencies and ministries involved in programming and funding of global change research collaborate in IGFA;
• the international global change research programmes: The World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) and the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP) are key international frameworks for nations and institutions to cooperate in undertaking research into broad planetary environmental issues and in the funding of such research.
  Other organisations prepared to contribute to the development of IGOS may be welcomed as Partners in future. The Partnership provides a continuing mechanism to oversee the development of IGOS. The IGOS-P Secretariat ensures continuity in the process, provides a focus for external interfaces, and helps to promote the visibility of the IGOS-P in key arenas, such as the environmental conventions.

IGOS Themes

The IGOS Partners recognise that it is not practical to attempt to define a comprehensive global system that would in a single step satisfy all needs for environmental information. Rather, they have adopted a process – The IGOS Themes – which allows for the coherent definition and development of an overall global strategy for observing selected fields of common interest among a group of the Partners. Selection of the Themes is based on an assessment of the relevant scientific and operational priorities for overcoming deficiencies in information, as well as analysis of the state of development of relevant existing and planned observing systems.

The first IGOS Themes are:

• Ocean Theme (Under leadership of IOC/UNESCO and CEOS/NASA);
• Integrated Global Carbon Observations (IGCO) Theme (Under leadership of IGBP);
• Integrated Global Water Cycle Observations Theme (Under leadership of WCRP and CEOS/NASDA);
• Integrated Global Atmospheric Chemistry Observations (IGACO) Theme (Under leadership of WMO);
• Coastal Theme – starting with a Coral Reefs sub-theme (Under leadership of UNEP and CEOS/NOAA);
• Geological and Geophysical Hazards Theme (Under leadership of UNESCO and CEOS/ESA).

CEOS involvement in IGOS

CEOS has embraced the concept of an Integrated Global Observing Strategy as a valuable initiative which perfectly complements its own set of objectives, and which may be adopted by CEOS to derive greater benefit from operating and planned observing systems. Through working together, CEOS agencies are in a position to plan their Earth observation programmes with the minimum of unnecessary overlap and to devise joint strategies for addressing serious gaps in their observation capabilities.

Strengthened links between space-based and Earth-based observing systems, and with scientific and environmental policy-making processes provide compelling motivation for CEOS to take an active role in IGOS Partnership activities. To reflect the significance of IGOS work, and notably the progress of the IGOS Themes, within its efforts, CEOS established a Strategic Implementation Team (SIT) – which has the responsibility to address the composition and function of the space component of an IGOS.

On a Theme by Theme basis, the SIT takes the lead role in defining the requirements for, and capabilities of, existing and planned satellite-based observing systems for specific measurements and applications for consideration in IGOS-P.

Further information on IGOS

Extensive information on the activities of the IGOS Partnership can be found on the WWW site.

www.igospartners.org

The IGOS brochure also contains the latest information on each of the IGOS Themes and full contact information for the Theme Teams:

ioc.unesco.org/igospartners/IGOSbrochure2002.pdf

You can also register to receive copies of the IGOS Bulletin, distributed twice a year by CNES by sending an e-mail to Dominique Fourny-Delloye at:

Dominique.Fournydelloye@cnes.fr