The Eye in the Sky – How Europe's Satellites track Weather Phenomena and Climate Change
June 9, 2026 / 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. / Lecture Hall I, Poppelsdorf Campus (Friedrich-Hirzebruch-Allee 5, 53115 Bonn)
Is this still weather or already climate? Weather and climate change are global phenomena that we cannot adequately understand without space technology. Satellite-based Earth observation provides indispensable data for Earth system models, which are essential for weather forecasts and climate simulations. Forecasts of extreme weather events protect lives and infrastructure and are essential every day, not only for the general public but also for industry. Europe is a leader in this field with programs such as Copernicus, Sentinel, EUMETSAT, and Destination Earth – and the pressure to act is growing.
This session is dedicated to the scientific, technical, and political foundations of the use of European Earth observation data. It will examine how this data is used to develop and initialize Earth system models that enable well-founded predictions about the future development of the Earth. This applies both to timescales ranging from days to weeks – i.e., weather – and to timescales of decades and centuries – i.e., climate.
A special focus is on the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), whose precise forecast models and data streams rely heavily on space infrastructure. The session will also discuss how European Earth observation can be further developed—including navigating the tension between public interest, security applications, and the commercial use of geodata.
The event is being held in cooperation with the German Space Agency, the Federation of German Industries (BDI), the German Armed Forces Space Command, the Society for Security Policy (GSP), the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS), the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP), the Research Network for Security and Technology in Space (SichTRaum), the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (FNF), the Bonn/Rhein-Sieg Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK Bonn-Rhein-Sieg), the Bonn Adult Education Center, and the ASTRA student association.
Procedure
Welcome:
Dr. Enrico Fels
Managing Director of the Center for Advanced Security, Strategic and Integration Studies (CASSIS)
Lecture followed by discussion:
Dr. Peter Dueben
Head of the Earth System Modeling Department at the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF)
In close cooperation with:
