The State of Earth Observing System Today: Updates Compiled from Recent EUMETSAT Meteorological Satellite Conferences

This work presents highlights from the 2021 and 2022 EUMETSAT conferences, drawn from their presentations, posters, and panel discussions and placed into the wider context of the global Earth Observing (EO) system. These highlights collectively reveal much about the current state of knowledge about the EO system, its potential future evolutions, and how that system can be used to produce useful products and services. European, American, and Asian space agencies presented their visions for the next generation of operational satellite programs and demonstrated how these will continue to improve environmental forecasting and monitoring products. User communities presented updates on the use of satellite data, including climate records, novel precipitation retrievals, drought monitoring, weather forecasting, and retrievals of a broadening range of trace gases. On the technology side, discussion on the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on Earth observation was a major theme, particularly for weather forecasting, data assimilation, or other environmental predictions. Cloud computing was another topic due to its potential to streamline the workflow of EO scientists, enhancing collaborations and unlocking access to previously unavailable data or computing resources. Finally, discussion on the miniaturization of observational instruments was another major theme of both conferences, highlighting both the possibility of novel or enhanced observations and the emerging economic case for commercial entities to operate fleets of meteorological satellites.