DTE
Digital Twin Earth
The ESA Digital Twin Earth Programme is advancing Earth observation by integrating satellite data into virtual models to monitor and predict environmental changes, contributing to Destination Earth driving sustainability and maximising impact.
Powering Digital Twins with Earth Observation Data
Digital Twin Earth
Programme
ESA has established itself as a leader in Earth Observation through its Earth Explorer and Sentinel missions. The data collected powers innovative products, applications, and research, enhancing our understanding of the Earth system, ecosystems and interaction with human activities.
Based on these advanced Earth Observation capabilities, the ESA Digital Twin Earth (DTE) Programme is designed to maximise the use of Earth Observation in developing digital replicas of the Earth system – digital twins. These digital twins enable precise monitoring and forecasting of environmental changes, supporting the decision making of policymakers, businesses and communities through applications such as climate monitoring, environmental assessment and urban planning.
By contributing to Destination Earth, the ESA Digital Twin Earth Programme leverages cutting-edge Earth Observation data to address global challenges and promote sustainability.
Through the DestinE platform and its data services, the two programmes collaborate to complement one another, avoid duplication, and maximize impact. As an operational programme, DestinE may integrate ESA DTE’s advanced digital twin components in the future—enhancing capabilities and fostering innovation toward a more sustainable future.
DTE Activities
are divided into 3 main categories:
Digital Twin Earth Framework
Earth Observation Digital Twin Components
Interoperability with initiatives of ESA Member States
Digital Twin Earth Framework
The ESA Digital Twin Earth Framework is a cutting-edge system designed to enable the development of digital twins by integrating ESA's Earth Observation data.
Built on the DestinE Platform, the framework provides seamless access to data from ESA’s Earth Explorer, Heritage, and other key missions, making it easier to create powerful digital twin applications.
DTE Framework features
DestinE Streaming Service
By adapting DestinE’s 20PB of data outputs into a streamlined format, the framework delivers easy access to vast datasets via Python APIs, a web interface, and comprehensive access tools. This breakthrough leverages video-streaming-inspired technologies, optimizing big data handling for climate and EO applications.
ESA Earth Observation Data Flows
ESA’s Earth Explorer mission data is fully integrated into the DestinE Platform, ensuring users have access to a rich, diverse dataset essential for building digital twins.
Synthetic Scene Generator
This pre-operational service will generate realistic 3D synthetic satellite sensor scenes using DestinE data. These large-scale synthetic datasets simulate observations at various spatial, spectral, and temporal resolutions, offering unprecedented flexibility for digital twin applications.
With advanced tools and data , the Digital Twin Earth Framework empowers researchers, developers, and innovators to unlock new possibilities in Earth monitoring, climate analysis, and digital twin development— paving the way for a smarter, more sustainable future.
Earth Observation
Digital Twin Components
The Earth Observation Digital Twin Components (EO DTCs) are pre-operational digital twins designed to dynamically reconstruct, characterise, and simulate elements of the Earth system and their interactions with human activities. These components allow users to explore various conditions and scenarios, including “what-if” analyses, to better understand and predict changes in the Earth system.
Developed by interdisciplinary teams of scientists, industry experts, AI specialists, and IT professionals, EO DTCs aim to showcase the immense value of Earth Observation (EO) capabilities and their potential for integration into Digital Twin ecosystems. These include European initiatives such as DestinE, as well as regional and national programmes.
Community Consultation: Call for Expressions of Interest
In May 2023, ESA launched a Call for Expressions of Interest (EoIs) to gather community input and support for developing specific EO-based Digital Twin Components. The response was overwhelmingly positive, with nearly 80 submissions from across Europe.
This community input helped shape the requirements for the design of the EO DTCs and the Earth system components that would be addressed.
Lead DTCs Development actions
The Lead Development Actions focus on advancing pre-operational Digital Twin Components for key Earth system elements where science and technology are sufficiently mature for large-scale implementation.
These projects will deliver fully developed systems that are:
Technically advanced and conceptually robust
Scientifically validated
Extensively tested by early adopters
Each system demonstrates community benefits, outlines a roadmap for growth, and prepares for integration into the DestinE platform, paving the way for future operational use.
Early DTCs Development Actions
The Early DTC Development Actions focus on Earth system components that require further scientific development and refinement for EO-based digital twins.
These actions aim to define and demonstrate prototypes for emerging themes, laying the groundwork for future advancements.
The Key Objectives of these EO DTCs are
Develop feasibility reports and preliminary prototype demonstrations.
Ensure scientific validation and testing by early users.
Showcase growing community and stakeholder support.
Interoperability and operational collaboration with MS initiatives
The activity on the collaboration with Member States aims at integrating relevant national activities and initiatives related to digital twins.
It will ensure the inclusion and technical integration onto the Destination Earth Platform and within DTE.
