This proposed project, to be developed through a process of collaborative work between UK, Russian Federation and other European scientists and engineers, was initiated by the Institute of Physics of the Earth, Russian Academy of Science and the Mullard Space Science Laboratory, University College London.

The proposed project is based on the latest achievements in the study of seismo-ionospheric coupling and the formation mechanisms of the disturbances in near Earth space at the preparatory phases of earthquakes and volcano eruptions.
• Numerous phenomena related to earthquake and volcano activity can be registered by modern geophysical instruments in the Earth’s atmosphere and ionosphere;
• Many of these phenomena are observed during the earthquake preparation period - weeks, days and hours before the seismic event. These phenomena can be considered as the precursors to earthquake and be used for forecasting purposes;
• Space-based monitoring of earthquake precursors has fundamental significance because it provides continuous global converage of seismic activity effects and gives the opportunities for registration of a number of precursors inaccessible for measurement by ground based or airborne devices;
• The effectiveness and practical significance of space-based monitoring will be much higher if it is accompanied with supporting ground based observations;
• The CNES Demeter satellite, 2004-10, surveying the Earth's electromagnetic environment, has demonstrated the potential for such an approach.