Copernicus Applications: Monitoring crop health across the Netherlands
It goes without saying that we all depend on agriculture for food. However, the growing global population and the climate crisis is putting untold pressure on food production and water resources. While rich developed nations may be able to weather a failed crop, the loss of a precious harvest can be disastrous for many countries facing the serious issue of food security. Thanks to the benefits of different types of data from two particular Copernicus Sentinel missions and an ingenious new dataset tool, people working in the agriculture sector, but who are not satellite data experts, can monitor the health and development of crops, right down to each crop in individual fields. It is critical that datasets are made available in easy to understand and easy to use ways. Addressing this need, ESA works together with the TU Delft to develop the Agricultural Sandbox XL. As its name suggests, this toolset has been used to hone in on the Netherlands where much land is given over to agriculture.
