the European satellites that the government consulted to see images of the DANA of Valencia

The European Copernicus system was activated on Tuesday October 29 at 4 p.m. obtain high quality satellite images live in the area affected by DANA. As EL ESPAÑOL was able to confirm, the National Center for Monitoring and Coordination of Emergencies (CENEM) of the Ministry of the Interior has activated this European service that observes the earth for environmental purposes such as early detection and monitoring of natural disasters such as floods or fires. .

Named after the scientist Nicolas Copernicus, this program provides near real-time data on the entire planet, to better understand its climate and environment. Nevertheless, It is possible to use it for local needs as in the case of DANA and its consequences in Valencia and other provinces at the end of October.

“In a world where so many people are affected, there is a critical need for effective early warningsmonitoring efforts and emergency response tools,” says a Copernicus emergency management service report dated Oct. 24, a week before DANA.

from space

Copernicus is made up of a set of satellites called Sentinel, as well as other commercial and public satellites. The Sentinels first reached space in 2014 with the launch of Sentinel-1A. Since then, the European Union has continued to roll out more models with the aim of create a constellation of 20 satellites before 2030.

The data collected by these satellites adds to the information provided by other systems such as ground stations. The dataset is used for various purposes, starting with water quality monitoringthrough the detection of methane emissions, the care of agriculture, to the management of natural disasters such as the recent floods experienced in Spain.

The list of missions in which Copernicus can be useful is long. The mission provides services ranging from Arctic sea ice monitoring, iceberg tracking, routine sea ice mapping, oil spill monitoring and ship detection for maritime safety. Of course, on land it is possible to offer information on earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and mapping of forests and soils.

For example, on September 4, ESA’s Vega rocket, on its final farewell voyage, was responsible for placing the Sentinel-2C satellite into orbit, part of a constellation of two identical models previously sent into space: the Sentinel-2A. (2015) and Sentinel-2B (2017). These orbit on the same trajectory with a separation of 180º to optimize coverage.

Each is equipped with a high-resolution multispectral sensor capable of providing optical images. At an altitude of 786 kilometers, they offer images in 13 spectral bands with resolutions of 10, 20 and 60 meters. The ESA explains that the satellite has a single scan width of 290 kilometers.

However, their destiny is not to live together but to maintain a renewed workforce. Thus, the Sentinel-2C replaces its predecessor, the Sentinel-2A, while Sentinel-2D will succeed Sentinel-2B in the future.

Early warnings

Just a week before DANA arrived on the peninsula, CEMS reported on progress in preventing and managing increasingly frequent disasters such as fires and floods. “CEMS is taking additional steps to equip competent authorities with the best tools to support citizens before, during and after this type of disaster“, we can read in the press release.

In this area, new datasets have been developed to improve the accuracy of European and global flood warning systems (EFAS and GloFAS). They also have a new tool, FLEXTH, intended to more precisely determine the extent of flooding and the depth of the water. FLEXTH combines satellite maps with topographic data to quickly estimate flood depth.

In the advancement of these tools, Artificial intelligence could play a key role in improve capacity early warning systems for floods and droughts. However, this technology is still in development and requires a large amount of data to help detect, monitor and predict these phenomena.