The fourth edition of an international competition ‘Seize the Beauty of our Planet’ has just started. As previous editions, it combines space technologies with a pro-environmental approach, and this year’s motto is “Together for COOL Earth!” as it focuses on global warming and its impact on our planet. The contest is organized by CloudFerro, the provider and operator of Earth Observation platforms with access to Copernicus satellite data and a cloud environment to process it.

As human-induced climate change continues to pose a pressing threat to the Earth’s delicate balance, the satellite image contest seeks to raise awareness about global warming and inspire action through scientific evidence and artistic expression. The contest challenges remote sensing specialists, environmentalists, and Earth observation enthusiasts alike to use satellite data, numbers, and facts to capture the undeniable reality of our changing climate.

The staggering numbers leave no room for doubt. Over the past century, the Earth’s average surface temperature has surged approximately 1.2°C, causing glaciers to recede and sea levels to rise at an alarming rate. For most of the European seas, over the past 30 years, sea level has risen by an average of 2–4 mm/year, and global mean sea surface temperature has increased of approx. 0.6°C over the last four decades. Moreover, according to the Copernicus’ European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), 45 countries in Europe suffered 16 941 fires in 2022, and the area burnt amounted to 1 624 381 hectares (ha), which is 48% more in the number of fires than between 2021 and 2022.

Satellite observations reveal a drastic increase in extreme weather events, such as storms, hurricanes, and wildfires, which wreak havoc on communities and ecosystems worldwide. The contest ‘Seize the beauty of our Planet’ gives EO and environmental specialists and enthusiasts a unique opportunity to widely promote pro environmental measures by providing satellite images as empirical and unequivocal evidence of global warming. From vanishing Arctic ice to the bleaching of vital coral reefs, these visuals will serve as poignant reminders of the urgent need for collective action to combat climate change.

As the provider and operator of European Earth observation platforms, such as CREODIAS, Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem, WEkEO, or German CODE-DE and EO-Lab, CloudFerro also aims to promote the use of Earth observation data in environmental research, showing a key role it plays in efficient and cost-effective monitoring of environmental changes. Satellite data from the European Copernicus programme is available in many attributes and provides researchers and scientists with excellent resources for climate analysis in all dimensions, from local to global, and from visible to radar techniques.

It is the fourth time that we have been organizing the contest ‘Seize the beauty of our Planet’. As a provider of cloud services for the space sector, climate research and science, which are used for processing multi-petabyte Earth Observation satellite data repositories, we recognize the important role this data plays in creating solutions to run a more sustainable economy. That’s why, as in the previous editions, we aim at promoting the use of satellite data in research and raising awareness about and the effects of climate change on Earth. This year we focus on global warming and the need to take bolder measures to reverse this disturbing trend. says Joanna Małaśnicka, Marketing Director at CloudFerro.

All who wish to enter the competition need to submit a satellite image that depicts an area impacted by global warming and its consequences. The image should come from one of the Earth observation platforms provided and operated by CloudFerro i.e. CREODIAS/Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem, WEkEO, CODE-DE or EO-Lab. The images will then be put to an online vote of the general public, and 13 images with the highest number of votes will proceed to the 2nd stage, where a Jury of Earth Observation experts will choose the best three.

The authors of the three best works will be awarded with attractive prizes, while all the 13 winners will be awarded a CloudFerro calendar for 2024, which will also be distributed among leading institutions, companies and organisations of the Earth Observation sector.

Contest entries should be submitted by October 12, 2023. Detailed terms and conditions can be found on the organizer’s website: https://cloudferro.com/contest2023.

Media Contact
Maciej Myśliwiec
m.mysliwiec@planetpartners.pl
(+48) 508 23 24 25