Discover Border Surveillance

Discover Maritime Surveillance

Discover Support to EU External and Security Actions

Discover R&D for EO Security

 

The Copernicus service for Security applications aims to support European Union policies by providing information in response to Europe’s security challenges. It improves crisis prevention, preparedness and response in four key areas:

• Border surveillance;
• Maritime surveillance;
• Support to EU External and Security Actions.
• R&D for EO Security

 

Border Surveillance

In the area of border surveillance, the  main objectives are to reduce the death toll of illegal immigrants at sea, to increase the internal security of the European Union and to fight against cross-border crime.

With an agreement signed on 10 November 2015, the European Commission entrusted FRONTEX with the border surveillance component of the Copernicus Security Service. The objective is to support the EU’s external border surveillance information exchange framework (EUROSUR) by providing near real time data on what is happening on land and at sea around the EU’s borders.

 

Maritime Surveillance

In the area of maritime surveillance, the overall objective of the European Union is to support Europe's maritime security objectives and related activities in the maritime domain. The corresponding challenges mainly relate to safety of navigation, support to fisheries control, combatting marine pollution, and law enforcement at sea.

With an agreement signed on 3 December 2015, the European Commission entrusted  EMSA with the operation of the maritime surveillance component of the Copernicus Security Service. Under the agreement, EMSA uses space data from Copernicus Sentinel 1 and other satellites combined with other sources of maritime information to effectively monitor maritime areas of interest.

 

Support to EU External and Security Actions (SESA)

The Copernicus security service component on Support to EU External and Security Actions (SESA) is a European geospatial information service that assists the EU and its Member States in the framework of applicable Union policies and legislation along the following main policy groups, associated to key responsibilities across EU Institutions and Member States:

1.    Union external action supporting the Union and its Member States   
2.    Security challenges facing the Union and its Member States   
3.    Monitoring of the implementation of EU Law

The EU Satellite Centre (SatCen) was entrusted by the Commission in 2016 with the implementation of the Copernicus security service in support to EU External Action.

On 29 August 2023, the Commission and the SatCen signed a new contribution agreement for the implementation of the Copernicus Security Service component SESA. This new agreement ensures the continuity of service provision until 2027 and implements evolutions. 

The SESA service includes indeed new application areas, notably addressing Security of EU Citizens, Humanitarian Aid, Crisis and Conflict, Rule of Law, Transport Safety and Security, Stability and Resilience for Development, Cultural Heritage, International Trade and Economic Diplomacy as well as cutting-edge challenges such as Environmental Compliance, Climate Security or Health Security. These additional application areas have been designed based on specific user needs and through service evolution activities. The SESA service mainly targets European users, but it can also be activated by key international stakeholders, as appropriate under EU international cooperation agreements.   
 

For a more detailed presentation please refer to the attached factsheet.

 

 

Research for Earth Observation Security applications 

With the adoption of the EU Space Programme Regulation in 2021, emphasis was placed also on strengthening the link with research activities, particularly Horizon Europe, aligning R&D activities with service evolution needs, while maximising the probability of uptake of R&D results and foster Industrial competitiveness.   
Earth Observation (EO) technologies are advanced significantly, both in terms of observation and data processing capacities, allowing for narrowing the gap between user expectations and service delivery. It became key to incorporate new technologies into operational services, rendering them more fit for the purpose they were designed for, while countering obsolescence.