New applications at the intersection between Earth observation data and the raw materials sector

From 11 June to 14 June, a short course took place at the University of Liège, Belgium that aimed to introduce the potential of Earth observation and remote sensing as important tools for the raw materials community. The organisers were the University of Liège, Helmholtz Zentrum Dresden (HZDR), and the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC). The course was in the scope of the groundbreaking Copernicus RawMatCop programme that aims to demonstrate new applications at the intersection between Earth observation data and the raw materials sector. RawMatCop is funded by European Commission DG Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROW), and EIT RawMaterials.

The course offered a hands-on approach to facilitate the comprehension of difficult concepts in optical passive remote sensing and active remote sensing. There was a focus on the freely available spaceborne acquisitions through the Copernicus programme (Sentinel-1, Sentinel-2) and the use of open-source software. Furthermore, the Research and User Support (RUS) Service portal of Copernicus supported the participants by providing powerful virtual machines that were used throughout the course. The course also included presentations from experts affiliated to the funding and organising institutions and from the Belgian Science Policy Office and Freiberg University, Germany.

The course participants were from universities, research centers, and industry, and thus the course was not only rich with its content, but with the connections and the new friendships that the participants and the trainers achieved.

More information about the RawMatCop is available here.