Destination Earth

Destination Earth (DestinE) is a flagship initiative of the European Commission to develop a highly accurate digital model of the Earth that will be used to monitor the effects of natural and human activity on our planet, anticipate extreme events and adapt policies to climate-related challenges.

In spring 2022, the European Commission, together with partnering organisations, launched the Destination Earth (DestinE) initiative to help tackle climate change. The main goal of DestinE is to develop a highly accurate digital replica of the Earth. More importantly, DestinE will enable scientists and policymakers to better understand the complex interactions between the environment and human activities that shape Earth’s future. It will also serve as a foundation for effective European adaptation strategies, supporting the green transition and advancing the EU’s goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, as well as the implementation of the European Commission’s Green Deal and Digital Strategy.

DestinE is jointly implemented by European Space Agency (ESA), European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) and European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) with progressive development of DestinE Core Service Platform (DESP, operated by ESA), DestinE Data Lake (DEDL, operated by EUMETSAT) and first digital twins on climate change adaptation and weather-induced extremes (developed by ECMWF).

An outline of the core services of DestinE. DESP is a user-friendly platform offering evidence-based tools, applications and services for policy and decision-making, built on a secure, open, flexible and scalable cloud architecture. DEDL is a storage and access solution for DestinE users, offering harmonised access to datasets across types and locations, along with near-data processing capabilities. Digital Twin Engine is a software framework enabling precise Earth system simulations for modelling and predictions.

DestinE plans to advance toward a full digital replica of the Earth by gradually integrating additional digital twins in subsequent phases of the programme. These additional digital twins will be developed within thematic categories from various domains of Earth science, such as forests. The ultimate goal is to combine these individual models into a unified, comprehensive digital twin of the entire Earth system by 2030.

For more information on DestinE, please, visit the DestinE website. Additional information about DestinE can be found from the websites of the European Space Agency (here) and the European Commission (here).

ESA DTE programme

The new ESA Digital Twin Earth (ESA DTE) programme aims to bring the latest scientific findings, Earth observation (EO) capabilities and EO-based products to a pre-operational level. More importantly, it aims to develop a comprehensive set of novel EO-based Digital Twin Components to showcase the potential value of EO in shaping the future of DestinE.

Recent advancements in EO-based science and research are paving the way for a new generation of EO data products, innovative applications and scientific breakthroughs. These developments provide a more advanced and comprehensive understanding of the Earth’s system, its processes and its interactions with human activities and ecosystems. These emerging capabilities present unique opportunities to significantly enhance the use of EO technology in the development of digital twins.

Specifically, these advancements in EO, along with developments in sector-specific modelling, computing power, artificial intelligence and digital technologies, lay a solid foundation for creating innovative EO-based Digital Twin Components (EO DTCs). These Components hold the potential to strengthen and expand the role of EO satellite technology in the design and deployment of future digital twins.

Through the DTE programme, ESA aims to support the creation of conditions necessary for the widespread adoption of innovative EO capabilities in the design and implementation of future operational digital twin ecosystems, with a primary focus on DestinE. To achieve these objectives, the ESA DTE programme will be structured around two key pillars: implementing an ESA EO Data Space and implementing a set of EO-based DTCs.

The initial phase of the DTE programme (approximately two years) will involve the development and implementation of the initial set of DTCs focused on specific themes, which are categorised into priority and secondary groups. The priority themes, identified through community consultation, are considered sufficiently mature to support large-scale activities. Forests are one of the priority themes for the EO DTCs.

Digital Twin Components

A set of EO-based Digital Twin Components will be developed as advanced digital replicas of key components of the Earth system. These digital reconstructions will represent a major breakthrough compared with existing systems and solutions.

ESA has a target to develop and demonstrate, to a pre-operational level, a set of EO-based Digital Twin Components (DTCs) as advanced digital replicas of key components of the Earth system, including their interactions with human activities and ecosystems. These DTCs will be designed to serve a wide range of users, providing advanced scientific and decision support tools, with a strong focus on maximising the value of EO capabilities.