EnMAP science activities 3 years after launch: Highlights

Kurzfassung

The Environmental Mapping and Analysis Program (EnMAP) satellite mission was launched on 1st April 2022, designed to make a significant contribution to the availability of high quality spaceborne imaging spectroscopy products for the characterization and monitoring of the Earth’s environment and its changes. The EnMAP mission stands for its sophisticated design with on-board calibration, high data quality, long-term development and strong science accompanying program for preparation and exploitation of the mission. EnMAP is led by the German Space Agency at the German Aerospace Center (DLR), the space segment was built by OHB, the ground segment is led by the Earth Observation Center at DLR, while the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ) is leading the science segment, OHB building the space segment. After a successful short commissioning phase, EnMAP entered into operation in November 2022. The EnMAP mission encompasses global coverage from 80° N to 80° S based on user demands. The freely accessible data are characterized by 30 m spatial resolution, high spectral resolution with a spectral sampling distance of 6.5 nm and 10 nm in the VNIR and SWIR regions respectively, and high signal-to-noise ratio. The primary scientific goals of the hyperspectral EnMAP mission are to study environmental changes, investigate ecosystem responses to human activities, and monitor the management of natural resources. The EnMAP scientific exploitation and support program in the satellite operational phase focuses on the demonstration of scientific achievements for various cutting-edge and environmental applications of benefit to society today. The emphasis is also placed on the external validation of EnMAP supported by the EnSAG and international validation teams from EnMAP science community, as well as on the developments in open source softwares, algorithms and educational tools. In this presentation, we present the results of the external EnMAP validation, and highlight the science potential of EnMAP to operate in various environmental conditions, including high and low light levels, dense forests, Antarctic glaciers, inland and coastal waters, deserts and agricultural areas. This enables the use of satellite-based imaging spectroscopy data for various applications in field such as retrieval of vegetation traits, mapping of soil composition, raw materials exploration, methane emissions, or an assessment of water quality, and snow and ice properties. Overall, EnMAP’s performance exceeds the mission requirements, and significant potential for contribution to scientific exploitation in various geo- and bio-fields is demonstrated to support upcoming EU Copernicus services. Further, these advances shall support the establishment of synergies and collaboration with concordant imaging spectroscopy missions, and support the development of open benchmark datasets and algorithms as key long-term objectives, which can serve as precursor for future missions like CHIME and SBG.