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After the exhilaration of receiving operational data from Sentinel-1, comes another reason to get excited - the launch of Sentinel-2. The first of a two-satellite constellation, Sentinel-2 will deliver high-resolution optical data in 13 spectral bands over the Earthâs land masses providing the next layer of data feeding into the Copernicus Land Monitoring Services.â©
In response to this, European nations are gearing up to build the necessary technical infrastructure and commercial partnerships needed to facilitate the exploitation of Sentinel data for commercial growth and academic research. In March, the European Space Agency signed a collaborative agreement with France and the UK to provide national access points for Sentinel-1 and 2 data. â©
Building a new communityâ©
This is an important step for the space sector considering that the next generation of space companies donât yet exist. They will be led by entrepreneurs who engage in this data network and area able to spot and exploit new commercial opportunities. The result will be the creation of diverse services that contribute to our economic health, environmental responsibility and social well-being.â©
Finding the right platformâ©
In late April at the House of Commons, the team behind Europeâs leading Earth monitoring competition, the Copernicus Masters, launched its 2015 challenge round, looking for innovative applications in Earth observation data. â©
The challenge prizes combine comprehensive technical and business support and a substantial data package, exactly the kind of backing new ideas need to flourish and is why the Satellite Applications Catapult, along with Innovate UK and the UK Space Agency, is continuing its support for the competition in 2015.â©
Seeking ideas and applicationsâ©
The competition is growing in strength and has delivered some great success stories including Urthecast, the first company to stream HD footage of planet Earth from space and now a recognised pioneer in Earth observation space services who won the T-Systems Cloud Computing Challenge in 2011.â©
So if you have a great idea, itâs worth taking a couple of hours out of your day to enter â it could be just the boost your business idea needs.â©
The competition closes for entries on 13 July 2015 and more information can be found at www.copernicus-masters.com.â©
The Catapult team is also happy to help guide entrants through the application process and can be reached at [email protected] or call 01235 239637.
