Current plans supplied by CEOS agencies estimate that in the order of 100 new satellite missions will be launched for operation between 2011 and 2016. The next few years will mark a significant era for satellite Earth observations, with half of these new missions to be launched by the end of 2013. These new programmes will ensure continuity of key measurements, provide improved resolutions and accuracies, and introduce several exciting new capabilities. Some of the highlights are described below:

Operational meteorology:
The current geostationary programmes will continue operationally, recently supplemented by China’s FY-3 and South Korea’s COMS-1 from 2010. The NOAA series of polar orbiting satellites will evolve to become JPSS, featuring more advanced sensors and new capabilities. EUMETSAT will launch further MetOp series satellites and is planning to expand the capabilities of its geostationary satellite programme with the proposed launch of an advanced imager and a lightning imager on the Meteosat Third Generation – Imager (MTG-I) platform, as well as a hyperspectral infrared sounder on the MTG-sounder (MTG-S) platform. The capabilities will grow further through the inclusion of the ESA Sentinel-4 UVN mission on the MTG-S platform.

Atmospheric studies:
New data on the chemistry and dynamics of the Earth’s atmosphere will be gathered by missions from many countries, including GOSAT (launched 2009) and future missions such as GCOM (JAXA), OCO-2 (NASA) and EarthCARE (ESA/JAXA). ADM-Aeolus (ESA) will provide new information on winds.

Radiation budget:
Continuity and new capabilities are provided by NASA’s SORCE (launched in 2003), the PICARD mission (2010) of CNES, and operational meteorology missions, such as the MSG and JPSS series.

Ocean observations:
Continuity and improvements in many current measurements have been assured with the launch of missions such as Envisat and Aqua. SMOS (2009) and SAC-D/Aquarius (2011) are worthy of special note, since they will provide new capabilities for measurements of ocean salinity. Ocean surface wind and topography measurements – pioneered by the Topex/Poseidon and ERS missions – are to be continued operationally by sensors on the Jason-2 and Jason-3 missions and on the MetOp and JPSS series. Europe’s GMES programme will also provide the Sentinel-3 mission.

Land surface observations:
Advanced SAR systems on ALOS, TerraSAR-X and RADARSAT-2 are yielding new information on land surface properties. Launched in late 2009, ESA’s SMOS measures soil moisture. Operational meteorological satellites will supply continuous observation of land surface radiation and vegetation parameters. GMES will contribute the Sentinel-1 and 2 missions.

Hyperspectral observations:
A new generation of sensors is emerging, featuring hundreds of different spectral bands, with the capability – using spectral-libraries – to remotely sense the chemical composition of surfaces. Such sensors (including those on ASI’s PRISMA, China’s HJ-1A, Germany's EnMAP, NASA's HyspIRI, India's TES-HYS) are expected to provide new and exciting capabilities for Earth observation of land, sea and atmosphere.