Remote sensing and Earth Observations (EO) are used increasingly in different phases of risk management and in development cooperation, due to the challenges posed by contemporary issues such as climate change and increasingly complex social interactions. The advent of new, more powerful sensors and more finely tuned detection algorithms, coupled with the availability of data, provides an opportunity to assess and quantify natural hazards and their consequences, as well as vulnerable regions, more comprehensively than ever before.
Several agencies have now inserted permanently into their program the applications of EO data to risk management. During the preparedness and prevention phase, EO revealed fundamentals for hazard, vulnerability, and risk mapping. EO data intervenes both in emergency forecast and early emergency response, thanks to the potential of rapid mapping. EO data is also increasingly being used for mapping useful information for planning interventions in the recovery phase and then providing the assessment and analysis of natural hazards, from small to large regions around the globe.
In this framework, the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) has been working for several years on disaster management related to natural hazards (e.g., volcanic, seismic, landslide and flooding ones), including pilots, demonstrators, recovery observatory concepts, Geohazard Supersites and Natural Laboratory (GSNL) initiatives as well as multi-hazard management projects. Moreover, European Ground Motion Service (EGMS) has significantly improved the ability to monitor and analyse geohazards using InSAR (satellite interferometry) data since their availability for downloading. Data are provided since mid-2022 by the Copernicus Land Monitoring Service (CLMS) under the responsibility of the European Environment Agency (EEA). Many case studies can be taken into account for geohazards processes such as landslides, floods, seismic and tectonic studies, infrastructure damages, sinkholes, groundwater and hydrocarbon exploitation, Underground Gas Storage (UGS) activities, mining impacts, volcanic activity, and many more.
The session is dedicated to multidisciplinary contributions focused on the demonstration of the benefit of the use of EO for geohazards and risk management.
The research presented might focus on:
- Addressed value of EO data in hazard/risk forecasting models
- Innovative applications of EO data for rapid hazard, vulnerability and risk mapping, the post-disaster recovery phase, and in support of disaster risk reduction strategies.
- Development of tools for assessment and validation of hazard/risk models.
- Use EGMS data to monitor and investigate different kinds of geohazards and their impact on both environment and infrastructures.
- Analysis ready products derived from EGMS data for several topics, e.g. coastal studies or climate change estimations.
The use of different types of remote sensing data (e.g. thermal, visual, radar, laser, and/or the fusion of these) or platforms (e.g. space-borne, airborne, UAS, drone, etc.) is highly recommended, with an evaluation of their respective pros and cons focusing also on future opportunities (e.g. new sensors, new algorithms).
Early-stage researchers are strongly encouraged to present their research.
Contributions demonstrating innovative applications, cross-disciplinary approaches and case studies with practical implications are particularly welcome, as well as those aiming to highlight the versatility and value of EGMS data in understanding and mitigating the risks associated with geohazards.
Moreover, contributions from international cooperation, such as CEOS and GEO initiatives, are welcome.