TY - JOUR
T1 - A user-driven approach to determining critical earth observation priorities for societal benefit
AU - Zell, Erica
AU - Huff, Amy K.
AU - Carpenter, Adam T.
AU - Friedl, Lawrence A.
N1 - Funding Information:
Although previous studies have supported the need for prioritization of Earth observations through cost-benefit analyses of investments in observation systems and have assessed observation priorities within a single topic area, an effort to identify the priorities of users across all types of Earth observations and topic areas has not been made. In order to fill this gap, we have conducted a cross-sectoral meta-analysis of global Earth observation priorities from the perspective of users. The study was sponsored by GEO and was focused around GEO’s nine SBAs. This paper discusses the methodology and results of the prioritization study, including a ranking of 152 critical Earth observation priorities based on the needs of users across multiple SBAs. Some of these observations are critical for a particular field, such as disasters or agriculture, while others support a broad range of societal benefits. The results of this study can support the development of a data architecture to maximize interoperability and provide societal benefits from the most critical Earth observations.
Funding Information:
Manuscript received September 29, 2011; revised December 15, 2011 and March 23, 2012; accepted April 26, 2012. Date of publication July 03, 2012; date of current version December 28, 2012. This work was supported by GEO Task US-09-01a from NASA Applied Sciences Division (contract GS-23F-8167H) as well as from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the German Federal Ministry of Transportation, Building and Urban Development. E. Zell and A. K. Huff are with the Battelle Memorial Institute, Arlington, VA (corresponding author e-mail: [email protected]). A. T. Carpenter is with American Water Works Association, Washington, DC. L. A. Friedl is with NASA Applied Sciences Program, Earth Science Division, Washington, DC. Color versions of one or more of the figures in this paper are available online at http://ieeexplore.ieee.org. Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/JSTARS.2012.2199467
PY - 2012
Y1 - 2012
N2 - In order to help data providers make informed decisions regarding the availability and accessibility of Earth observations for societal benefit, a cross-sectoral meta-analysis of observation priorities was conducted from the perspective of users. The analysis was organized around the Group on Earth Observations' (GEOs) societal benefit areas (SBAs): Agriculture, Biodiversity, Climate, Disasters, Ecosystems, Energy, Health, Water, and Weather. Users' needs for Earth observations were prioritized using a two-stage process. In the first stage, critical observations for each individual SBA were determined based on observation needs expressed in publicly available documents, such as scientific journal articles, scientific reports, and workshop summaries. In the second stage, an ensemble of four statistically robust methods was used to prioritize the observations identified in the individual SBA analyses, based on their criticality and commonality to multiple SBAs. The result of the meta-analysis is a ranking of 152 critical Earth observation priorities; the highest priority Earth observations are those that are considered critical for the largest number of SBAs. The 10 highest ranked observations are: (1) Precipitation, (2) Soil Moisture, (3) Surface Air Temperature, (4) Land Cover, (5) Surface Wind Speed (6) Vegetation Cover, (7) Surface Humidity, (8) Urbanization, (9) Vegetation Type, and (10) Surface Wind Direction and Sea Surface Temperature (tie). This study represents one viable method to assess the priority of Earth observations from the perspective of users. The list of critical Earth observation priorities from this study is a foundation for engagement between data providers and users in regard to observation priorities.
AB - In order to help data providers make informed decisions regarding the availability and accessibility of Earth observations for societal benefit, a cross-sectoral meta-analysis of observation priorities was conducted from the perspective of users. The analysis was organized around the Group on Earth Observations' (GEOs) societal benefit areas (SBAs): Agriculture, Biodiversity, Climate, Disasters, Ecosystems, Energy, Health, Water, and Weather. Users' needs for Earth observations were prioritized using a two-stage process. In the first stage, critical observations for each individual SBA were determined based on observation needs expressed in publicly available documents, such as scientific journal articles, scientific reports, and workshop summaries. In the second stage, an ensemble of four statistically robust methods was used to prioritize the observations identified in the individual SBA analyses, based on their criticality and commonality to multiple SBAs. The result of the meta-analysis is a ranking of 152 critical Earth observation priorities; the highest priority Earth observations are those that are considered critical for the largest number of SBAs. The 10 highest ranked observations are: (1) Precipitation, (2) Soil Moisture, (3) Surface Air Temperature, (4) Land Cover, (5) Surface Wind Speed (6) Vegetation Cover, (7) Surface Humidity, (8) Urbanization, (9) Vegetation Type, and (10) Surface Wind Direction and Sea Surface Temperature (tie). This study represents one viable method to assess the priority of Earth observations from the perspective of users. The list of critical Earth observation priorities from this study is a foundation for engagement between data providers and users in regard to observation priorities.
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U2 - 10.1109/JSTARS.2012.2199467
DO - 10.1109/JSTARS.2012.2199467
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84872091894
SN - 1939-1404
VL - 5
SP - 1594
EP - 1602
JO - IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing
JF - IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing
IS - 6
M1 - 6230618
ER -
