Data in Use
New time series for 2014: Copernicus Sentinel-1 Interferometric Wide (IW) swath (IW). Archived time series for 1970-2013: Landsat, Envisat ASAR, and ERS SAR.

Service summary
The proposed service would offer high-resolution information on global urban development based on Sentinel-1 data. The emphasis is on the mapping of fine temporal dynamics, which makes it possible to ascertain changes at intervals shorter than one month. This would produce the fastest and freshest information source on urban developments. The service would also help to extrapolate and estimate urbanization trends with high accuracy.

Customer Benefit
The European Commission, environmental agencies, and large municipalities will have fresh and accurate information about urban area growth, which will aid in planning policies for environmental protection and infrastructure development.

The Expertise
«Copernicus Urban Development Analyser addresses the rapid expansion of settlements and the associated challenges. By taking advantage of Sentinel-1 data and existing methods developed by DLR, it detects new urban areas and combines them with population estimates to inform the public via web applications.»

Gunter Schreier
German Aerospace Center (DLR)
Business Development & Copernicus,
Deputy Director German Remote Sensing Data Center

 

Contact
University of Tartu
Kaupo Voormansik and Team
kaupo.voormansik@ut.ee
www.ut.ee