Preface
Twenty years after the first edition of the CEOS
Handbook was prepared for the Rio Summit in 1992,
this special edition, prepared in support of the
Rio+20 Summit, explores society’s increasing need
for information on our planet, the essential
foundation for sustainable development policies
that are aimed at ensuring our continued health
and prosperity in the face of human-made climate
change, population growth and degradation of our
natural environment.
It explains the important role of Earth
observation satellite programmes in fulfilling
these information needs. It presents the status
and plans for future Earth observation satellite
programmes of governments worldwide, through their
national and regional space agencies, and
describes how the data and information that they
supply relate to some of society’s most pressing
needs for information on Earth System processes
and our interaction with them.
The role of the Committee on Earth Observation
Satellites (CEOS), the body with responsibility
for coordination of government-funded satellite
programmes worldwide, is explained, including its
relation to the various global observing systems,
in particular the Global Earth Observation System
of Systems (GEOSS).
It is hoped that this report will prove to be a
valuable source of information concerning the
possible application and value of the data and
information from Earth observation satellites. It
should be of interest to a wide range of groups:
those with responsibility for
national/international development policy; those
responsible for programmes with requirements for
observations to enable understanding of our
environment and its processes; and those needing
information for decision-making in many
socio-economic sectors. The role of satellite
Earth observations in support of the definition
and execution of the major environmental
conventions is a particular focus in this edition.
It is further hoped that this report will be of
educational value, helping to explain some of the
techniques and technologies underlying satellite
Earth observation and making the subject as
accessible as possible to the lay person who would
like to investigate further.
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As an up-to-date and comprehensive compilation of
CEOS Agency plans, the report provides a handy
reference source on current and future civil Earth
observation programmes. It also provides details of
points of contact within CEOS and lists Internet
sources for those requiring more information.
Part I of the Handbook discusses changes in
the Earth System over the 20 years since Rio,
exploring the causes, the effects and the trends
(section 1). It explains the important role for
satellite Earth observations (section 2) and for
CEOS (section 3). Future challenges are discussed
in section 4.
Part II presents a number of case studies (section
5) to illustrate the use of Earth observation
satellites supporting the provision of information
for our understanding in key areas.
Part III of the Handbook summarises Earth
observation satellite capabilities and plans,
including a description of the various types of
satellite missions and instruments and their
applications (section 6). For those interested in
particular measurements (e.g. of ozone or ocean
temperature), section 7 provides details of 27
different parameters and the plans for their
observation during the coming decades. Sections 8
and 9 contain catalogues of satellite missions and
instruments, respectively.
The annexes include:
A. Further information on CEOS
B. Abbreviations
The full Handbook texts are available
online at
http://www.eohandbook.com. The database of the satellite missions,
instruments and measurements is online at
http://database.eohandbook.com
and contains powerful search and presentation
tools, with the ability to export customised
tables and timelines in support of analyses of
current and planned provision of observations in
support of different applications and
measurements.
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