Leads: Elizabeth Nuncio (DLR), Leonardo De Laurentiis (ESA), Batuhan Osmanoglu (NASA)
The commercial SAR sector is increasing in size, with more operators launching each year. SAR-VC will track commercial and non-governmental organisations currently operating or planning SAR missions.
SG5 activities include:
Action SG5-1: One of the current impediments to effective use of commercial SAR data is the challenge of matching commercial business incentives with agency-level policies regarding use and redistribution of data for scientific purposes. Commercial companies have demonstrated powerful scientific capabilities, often as a means to promote their systems’ capabilities, for specific customers, with limited coverage and distribution rights. Some agencies have pursued data-buy programs with announcements of opportunity for investigators to acquire and use data. However, policies for acquisition and distribution are ad hoc by agency and not coordinated to maximize science return, and typically not coordinated against the landscape of other civil or commercial missions. This activity strives to coordinate commercial policy with agency level usage policies.
Actions SG5-2: Furthermore, the data-buy programs do not always include tasking rights. Agency policies and agreements with vendors should be coordinated such that tasking is possible. The role of the SAR-VC will be to maintain a comprehensive accounting of Agency policies, agreements and practices, assess their effectiveness at CEOS-level coordination of commercial data buys for science activities, and formulate recommendations for improvements.