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Earth Science and Applications from Space: Urgent Needs and Opportunities to Serve the Nation
4
Summary and Next Steps
Global observations of Earth are essential to understanding how the planet is changing and the implications of these changes for society. In the coming decades, society’s prosperity and security will depend increasingly on Earth information, predictions, and warnings, which, in turn, rely fundamentally on sustained observations of the Earth system, linked to land and ocean observations and decision-support structures. Indeed, the need to improve this linkage was a key motivation for creating the Global Earth Observing System of Systems (GEOSS), which was initiated under U.S. leadership. During the next year the National Research Council’s Committee on Earth Science and Applications from Space will carry out its decadal study to recommend new observing systems for Earth science research and operations. The structure of its panels roughly reflects the socioeconomic benefit areas targeted by GEOSS (Table 4.1), an arrangement that will help ensure that the committee’s recommended Earth research and observations can be applied for the specific benefit of society—now and for future generations.
TABLE 4.1 Relationship of NRC Panel Themes with GEOSS Socioeconomic Benefit Areas
Decadal Survey Panel Theme
GEOSS Socio-Economic Benefit Area
Earth science applications and societal needs
Supporting sustainable agriculture and combating desertification
Reducing loss of life and property from natural and human-induced disasters
Ecosystem health and biodiversity
Improving the management and protection of terrestrial, coastal, and marine ecosystems
Understanding, monitoring, and conserving biodiversity
Weather
Improving weather information, forecasting, and warning
Climate variability and change
Understanding, assessing, predicting, mitigating, and adapting to climate variability and change
Water resources and the global hydrologic cycle
Improving water resource management through better understanding of the water cycle
Human health and security
Understanding environmental factors affecting human health and well-being
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Earth Science and Applications from Space: Urgent Needs and Opportunities to Serve the Nation
4
Summary and Next Steps
Global observations of Earth are essential to understanding how the planet is changing and the implications of these changes for society. In the coming decades, society’s prosperity and security will depend increasingly on Earth information, predictions, and warnings, which, in turn, rely fundamentally on sustained observations of the Earth system, linked to land and ocean observations and decision-support structures. Indeed, the need to improve this linkage was a key motivation for creating the Global Earth Observing System of Systems (GEOSS), which was initiated under U.S. leadership. During the next year the National Research Council’s Committee on Earth Science and Applications from Space will carry out its decadal study to recommend new observing systems for Earth science research and operations. The structure of its panels roughly reflects the socioeconomic benefit areas targeted by GEOSS (Table 4.1), an arrangement that will help ensure that the committee’s recommended Earth research and observations can be applied for the specific benefit of society—now and for future generations.
TABLE 4.1 Relationship of NRC Panel Themes with GEOSS Socioeconomic Benefit Areas
Decadal Survey Panel Theme
GEOSS Socio-Economic Benefit Area
Earth science applications and societal needs
Supporting sustainable agriculture and combating desertification
Reducing loss of life and property from natural and human-induced disasters
Ecosystem health and biodiversity
Improving the management and protection of terrestrial, coastal, and marine ecosystems
Understanding, monitoring, and conserving biodiversity
Weather
Improving weather information, forecasting, and warning
Climate variability and change
Understanding, assessing, predicting, mitigating, and adapting to climate variability and change
Water resources and the global hydrologic cycle
Improving water resource management through better understanding of the water cycle
Human health and security
Understanding environmental factors affecting human health and well-being
Solid-Earth hazards, resources, and dynamics
Improving management of energy resources
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