1. ESA’s Earth Observation Programmes and GOCE
GOCE User Workshop
Paris, 25 November 2014
Nicolaus Hanowski, ESA
Head of Earth Observation Ground Segment & Mission Operations Department,
Directorate of Earth Observation Programmes

2. Science – the Earth Explorers
… pioneering
a new family
of missions !
(… a personal
relationship ?!)

3. GOCE: Gravity and Ocean Circulation
First gradiometer in space
Best geoid ever
5th version of geoid released in July 2014, including all GOCE measurements
End of mission declared 21 October 2013 following depletion of Xenon fuel
Re-entry 11 November 2013
… to think about how to continue the legacy …

4. SMOS – Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity
Data delivery since February 2010
Complete Earth coverage within three days
Outstanding international cooperation
Mission extension until 2017

5. CryoSat - The Ice Mission
First interferometric altimeter in space
Global sea ice thickness measurements
Data used for ice research, but increasingly also for oceanography
Mission extension until 2017
© Thinkstock by Getty Images

6. Swarm – The Magnetic Field Mission
Three-satellite-constellation, launched November 2013
Dedicated to the geomagnetic field

7. Copernicus: A New Generation of Data Sources
Sent-1A/B
Sent-2A/B
Sent-3A/B
Sent-4A/B
Sent-5/5P
Sent-6A/B
Copernicus is a European space flagship programme led by the European Union
ESA coordinates the space component
Copernicus provides the necessary data for operational monitoring of the environment and for civil security
Sentinel-1A launch on 3 April 2014
Free and open data policy

8. ESA Earth Observation Programmes
Earth Explorers as a key component in the EO Programme …
… deliberate choice of an integrated EO Programme ! A large part of ESA activities.

9. GOCE: A Wealth of Applications
First gradiometer in space
Lowest satellite orbit ever
Electric propulsion
4th version of GOCE’s geoid released in March 2013; more than 70 million measurements of variations in gravitational attraction
Gravity Anomalies
Topography
Geoid
Altimetry
Positioning
Unified Height Systems
Ice Mass Balance
Post Glacial Rebound
Oil and Gas Exploration
Mean Ocean Circulation

10. Altimetry map (Envisat, Jason) High precision Geoid (GOCE)
Scientific Synergy of ESA’s EO Missions
The Gulf Stream
Altimetry map (Envisat, Jason)
High precision Geoid (GOCE)
Ocean Dynamic Topography
Ocean currents (GOCE)
CryoSat Data of Ice/Water surface

11. GOCE Re-Entry 11 November 2013
As seen from the Falkland Islands…
Nick Hanowski
“first impressions”
at NASA  gravity models of asteroids
at GSOC  GRACE control room & operations
at ESA/ESAC  LISA Pathfinder science operations
at ESA/ESRIN  GOCE re-enrty
Final path reported by the US Joint Space Operations Center, combined with the impact ground swath that was estimated by ESA's Spacecraft Atmospheric Re-Entry and Aerothermal Break-up software.

12. Thank you for your attention