Banff, Swarm and CryoSat science

The beautiful town of Banff in Canada was the setting for one of ESA's most important scientific conferences of 2017. In March scientists convened to discuss the latest results coming from two of ESA's Earth Explorer missions: Swarm and CryoSat.

Launched in 2013, the trio of Swarm satellites are measuring and untangling the different magnetic fields that stem from Earth’s core, mantle, crust, oceans, ionosphere and magnetosphere. CryoSat was launched in 2010 to measure the height of the ice, both of that floating in the polar oceans and of the vast ice sheets covering Greenland and Antarctica. This provides essential information on how the thickness is changing and, in turn, how the volume of ice is changing.

The Banff science meeting provided the platform for around 400 scientists and experts to participate in discussions on new science and discoveries about our planet thanks to these two extraordinary satellite missions. The meeting was also important for collecting thoughts and recommendations for ESA's consideration in the evolution of these two missions. With an introduction by ESA's Director of Earth Observation Programmes, Josef Aschbacher, the video offers a glimpse into this exciting gathering.