Institute for Earth Observation

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Glacier melt, storm damage and droughts have become emblematic of climate change. Mountain environments and societies are particularly vulnerable to these changes. At the Institute for Earth Observation we monitor the environmental dynamics of the Earth's surface in mountainous areas with the goal of understanding these changes and developing recommendations for risk management.

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Measurements on the ground were made by eight groups, matching the route of the Cessna aircraft. The measurements were taken at intervals of a few meters. The temperature at altitude was around -15 °C with, at times, very strong wind.© Eurac Research - Maurizio Gretter

Carlo Marin, remote sensing engineer and test manager, notes the results of the 7 measurements taken at each point. In the background Riccardo Barella measures the temperature in a small hole. The temperature is taken at two different depths 10cm and 30cm and always from the the side not hit by the sun so that the results remain as consistent as possible.© Eurac Research - Maurizio Gretter

To have additional control, the same spectral technology mounted on the plane was also used on the ground.© Eurac Research - Maurizio Gretter

This instrument is used to measure specific surface areas and what the surface area of the granules of a given material is.© Eurac Research - Maurizio Gretter

Claudia Notarnicola is showing the snow cover situation in the Alps based on satellite images.© Eurac Research - Annelie Bortolotti

Our researcher is taking ground measurements in Matschertal Valley (BZ) to validate the indices derived from the satellite data.© Eurac Research - Mattia Rossi

Facts
& Figures

Staff members

14 with a PhD degree

Ongoing projects

25 with international partners

Journal publications

Presentations at scientific conferences

Data refer to the last issue of the Activity Report. See all Facts & Figures.

Research Groups

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Climate and Disaster Risk

Advanced Computing for Earth Observation

Earth Observation for Environmental Monitoring

News & Events

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Dati e sostenibilità: un binomio complesso

Autonomia e sostenibilità. Quali sono i doveri individuali e collettivi verso l’ambiente?

17.04.2023

Dati e sostenibilità: un binomio complesso

13 April 2023

Interview on the decline of mountain snow cover

24 March 2023

DRI2 project successfully concluded

The project brought interesting results, which attracted the attention of other organisations in the field, enabling Eurac Research to continue refining the methods developed in DRI2 within the ...

13.12.2022

Climate Change and extreme events in the Alpine area: how to be prepared

01 December 2022

Inizia Return: è il più grande progetto mai realizzato in Italia su rischi e cambiamenti climatici

21 June 2022

We are Social

The Institute of Earth Observation opens its own social channel on Twitter and Linkedin

view all News & Events

Projects

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Project

ScaleAgData

SCALING ΑGRICULTURAL SENSOR DATA for an improved monitoring of agri-environmental conditions

Duration: December 2022 - December 2026Funding: Horizon Europe (EU funding / ...

Project

Birdwatch

BirdWatch - a Copernicus-based service for the improvement of habitat suitability of farmland birds ...

Duration: January 2023 - January 2026Funding: Horizon Europe (EU funding / ...

Project

OEMC

Open-Earth-Monitor Cyberinfrastructure

Duration: May 2022 - May 2026Funding: Horizon Europe (EU funding / ...

Project

interTwin

An interdisciplinary Digital Twin Engine for Science

Duration: August 2022 - August 2025Funding: Horizon Europe (EU funding / ...

Project

Snow CCI+ Phase 2

CCI+ Phase 2 - New ECVs / Snow (ESA Climate Change Initiative on the essential climate variable ...

Duration: January 2022 - January 2025Funding: ESA (International organisations ...

Project

CRIOSAR

Multi-frequency SAR applications to the cryosphere

Duration: July 2021 - July 2023Funding: ASI (National funding /Project)

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Institute's Projects

MAGAZINE Science Stories that Inspire

article

A breath of snow

New satellite technology to monitor the thermal conductivity of snow

article

Sport in montagna

Quale è la percezione del rischio e la preparazione di chi lo pratica?

article

Earth's swan song

What are thermokarst lakes and why soil warming should worry us even more than air warming

interview

“Data sustainability is the new frontier of research”

Conversations between disciplines: interview with physicist Claudia Notarnicola and emergency physician Giacomo Strapazzon.

article

What is an extreme event?

Since 1981, a research project has analysed the extreme events that have affected certain Alpine regions. The results of which have enabled new models to manage them better.