The new international platform is quietly reconstructing methods for verifying and harmonizing Earth observation data from satellites.
Known as the CEOS Product Verification Platform (CEOS-PVP), it offers free, open services that allow space agencies, commercial operators and researchers to check, compare and improve the quality of optical satellite measurements.
Developed on behalf of the Earth Observation Satellite Committee (CEO), the platform provides the necessary tools to make satellite imagery more consistent and interoperable, unlocking innovation in climate science, environmental surveillance, agriculture and many other areas.
Why consistent data on orbit is important
Even the most advanced satellites are not affected by small shifts in performance. Strong vibrations of firing and harsh conditions in space affect the ability to subtly alter the sensor and record accurate measurements over time.
These small discrepancies can lead to significant differences in outcomes, especially when Earth observation data from multiple satellites need to be combined, especially to track long-term environmental changes.
Independent performance checks are essential. Without them, it would be difficult to integrate Earth observation data from various sources into a single reliable image.
This is especially important for applications such as climate change tracking when unwavering accuracy is required to detect small trends over decades.
How CEOS-PVP works
The CEOS-PVP is hosted on the UK Earth Observation Data Hub (EODH) and serves as a central archive to upload satellite operators collected to a specified “reference” site.
These include specially monitored deserts, instrumentation facilities such as Radkarnet, and even the moon, which have been refined by the Earth Observation community for decades.
One of the important features of the platform is Radval. This is a visualization tool that allows users to track sensor performance over time for selected references.
The system also provides a general baseline where you can create virtual references and measure satellites by combining results from multiple sites.
This makes it easier to prepare analytical-enabled data (ARDs) that can harmonize Earth observation data from various sensors and can be replaced or combined without losing quality.
Boosts the growing “new space” sector
Larger satellites often carry onboard calibration devices, but smaller “SmallSat” systems typically rely solely on external references.
CEOS-PVP provides these operators with pathways to demonstrate and improve data quality, helping them meet international standards and compete in the global market for global observation data.
In both commercial and public missions, platform sharing tools and transparent metrics will further focus on reducing effort duplication and applying satellite data to real challenges.
Laying the foundation for future AI and climate applications
CEOS-PVP lays the foundation for the more sophisticated use of Earth observation data beyond the needs of immediate calibration.
By providing standardized, reliable references, we apply artificial intelligence to decades of archived images, opening new possibilities for environmental modeling, digital twin simulations and predictive analytics.
Future upgrades will link platforms to refer to satellite missions such as ESA’s Truths. This is a UK-led project designed to provide absolute physically trackable calibration values.
This will lock the virtual reference in the final “truth” measurement, further increasing confidence and comparability among sensors around the world.
Such accuracy is important for detecting subtle signals whether measuring the effectiveness of carbon reduction policies, monitoring biodiversity, or whether high confidence data informs essential legal and financial decisions.
CEOS-PVP helps bridge the gap between diverse satellite missions and the unified, reliable datasets that governments, businesses and scientists rely on by creating a single location where satellite performance can be evaluated, visualized and compared.
As participation increases and more data is added, the platform is set to become a central part of the Earth Observation Ecosystem, supporting everything from disaster response to climate response, ensuring that the views of the world from space are as accurate and consistent as possible.
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