Expanding Copernicus EO Capabilities for Hazard Monitoring: From Contributing Missions to Emerging Data Domains

The Copernicus programme provides one of the most comprehensive Earth Observation (EO) data offers worldwide. Beyond the Sentinel missions, Copernicus Contributing Missions (CCM) complement spectral, spatial, and temporal gaps by delivering high-resolution optical, radar, three-dimensional digital elevation models, and methane hotspot data globally, ensuring that Copernicus user needs are effectively addressed. EO data is a critical enabler for informed decision-making, and CCM supports this through systematic and on-demand data delivery across a wide range of applications, including emergency rapid mapping, risk and recovery analysis, security monitoring, methane emission detection, and large-area coverage for marine and land domains.

Since the programme’s operational start in 2015, building on the GMES legacy, these datasets have been primarily available to the eligible Copernicus Services but can also be accessed by national public authorities in Europe.  This contribution showcases CCM datasets used in emergency contexts, demonstrating how the combined use of systematic and on-demand acquisitions offers unique opportunities to investigate disasters and post-disaster dynamics beyond Sentinel capabilities. Access to these resources is facilitated through the Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem (CDSE) and dedicated on-demand services such as the Rapid Response Desk (RRD), enabling researchers to exploit multi-source data in an integrated environment.

In parallel with the operational data offer, ESA, in collaboration with DG DEFIS, has launched a tier of activities to introduce new EO commercial data domains into the Copernicus programme, including thermal infrared, hyperspectral, and radiofrequency, as well as innovative capabilities such as video collection, onboard processing, and AI-driven analytics. These developments aim to expand the Copernicus portfolio and support European industrial competitiveness while addressing emerging user needs. Examples of potential applications include monitoring land surface temperature, detecting urban heat stress, and improving hazard forecasting models.

Case studies presented in this contribution illustrate how Copernicus datasets, combined with new commercial capabilities, are reshaping opportunities for public authorities and researchers to exploit EO data for rapid hazard assessment, multi-hazard modeling, and resilience planning.

Keywords: Copernicus, Copernicus Contributing Missions, Natural Hazards, Copernicus Services, EO data legacy, EO Innovation.