Destination Earth Data Lake user story on Danube Delta water reservoir

The Danube Delta, the second-largest delta in Europe and a critical economic waterway, represents a dynamic yet fragile ecosystem requiring effective preservation strategies. Monitoring water reservoirs is crucial for both ecological sustainability and socio-economic management. The increasing availability of diverse datasets from multiple sources offers new opportunities to enhance real-time observation and forecasting efforts. 

Implemented by EUMETSAT, the Destination Earth Data Lake (DEDL) provides seamless access to these datasets and integrates high-performance computing for complex scientific modeling. Its edge services provide efficient, scalable data processing, empowering researchers to analyze environmental phenomena with speed and precision. 

Leveraging DEDL services enables to consolidate key hydrological datasets offering important features to monitor the ecosystem’s health state: 

• Daily live in situ data: Real-time measurements of water level, temperature, and discharge from DanubeHIS ground stations along the river and its delta, has been retrieved via the DEDL Harmonized Data Access (HDA). 

• Outputs from existing scientific algorithms: The integration and evolution of the Surfwater algorithm within the DEDL environment allows leveraging Earth Observation data (Landsat 8/9) to detect water bodies in the area. This makes it possible to generate time series of surface areas, volumes, and fill rates of water bodies within the region. 

• Hourly radar data: Rainfall rates are computed using OPERA radar observations on the European Weather Cloud instances. 

• Precipitation forecasts: Predictive data from ECMWF (Destination Earth Digital Twin Outputs), accessed via HDA, are leveraged to provide valuable forecasting insights. 
  

The outcome of those algorithms and analysis are provided live through a dashboard. By enabling cross-referencing of diverse data streams, it allows stakeholders to obtain a complete view of the Danube Delta’s environmental conditions, supporting informed decision-making for ecosystem preservation. 

Leveraging advanced geoscience tools, this integrated approach highlights the transformative power of modern data platforms in tackling global environmental challenges.