Copernicus
The European Copernicus Earth Observation Programme, User Driven Program previously known as GMES (Global Monitoring for Environment and Security), is a complex set of systems that collects information from multiple sources, namely Earth observation satellites and ground sensors, sea and airborne. It integrates and processes all this information, providing institutional and industrial users with reliable and up-to-date information through a series of services relating to the environment, territory and safety. Copernicus also has among its objectives that of guaranteeing Europe substantial independence in the collection and management of data on the state of health of the planet, supporting the needs of European public policies through the provision of precise and reliable services.
The services are divided into six thematic areas: land, sea, atmosphere, climate change, emergency management and security. These services, provided by operators commissioned by the Commission, support a wide range of applications supporting urban areas, regional and local planning, agriculture, forestry, fisheries, health, transport, climate change, development sustainable and civil protection.
On a national level, as part of the inter-ministerial meeting held on 3 December 2014 at the Presidency of the Council of Ministers with the aim of defining national guidelines in order to maximize the returns on our country in industrial terms and application services of the European Program Copernicus, the National Forum of Copernicus Program Users has been launched.
Coordinated by Prof. Andrea Taramelli, National Delegate at the European User Forum, the National Forum consists of a tool responsible for collecting the requirements of end and intermediate users with the aim of reaching an agreed and harmonized national position both for national developments within the Space Economy and towards the European Copernicus Forum and Committee, consistently with the institutional, research, business and industrial needs of the country.
The National Forum is made up of representatives of national communities, institutional connections towards Europe and participants in key activities for the development of the various components of Copernicus. At the heart of the National Forum there is an important work of communication and dissemination of information.