At the heart of Copernicus is a constellation of satellites – the Sentinels – that make a huge number of daily observations of the Earth ecosystem. The technological prowess of Copernicus, especially in terms of availability and accessibility, has made Copernicus the largest space data provider in the world.

The following diagram illustrates the conceptual elements of Copernicus as it relates to data access. 

 

 

The main components are:

• The Copernicus Space Component represented by the current set of Sentinel satellites.
• The Core Ground Segment elements command and control the Sentinel satellites, acquire the Sentinel data on-ground, and generate the Sentinel Reference Products. The reference products are archived locally in a Long Term Archive (LTA) in order to securely store the data over long periods of time.
• The Copernicus Services elements take the Sentinel Reference Products and use them, along with other data sources, to derive Copernicus Services Reference Products. Each of the Copernicus Service addresses a specific theme. The reference products are archived locally in a Long Term Archive (LTA). More details on the Copernicus Services can be found at https://www.copernicus.eu/en/copernicus-services .
• The reference products are made available via network transfers to cloud storage providers by the Core Ground Segment elements and the Copernicus Services elements.
• A series of web portals (the green boxes) that allow users to access the available reference products. Each web portal is designed to address a specific set of user needs. Each portal also offers a variety of data access mechanisms. One common data access mechanism is to allow the user to download the data to their local machine (eg. a transfer from the cloud storage via the internet, or a dedicated network such as GEANT, to the user’s data storage environment). Another common data access mechanism is to have the user access the data directly in a cloud computing environment associated to the cloud storage. This second method offers the advantage that the user can minimise their local data storage and processing environment. 

The vast majority of data/information delivered by Copernicus is made available and accessible to any citizen, and any organisation around the world on a free, full, and open basis. Information on the copyright and licenses for Copernicus can be found at https://www.copernicus.eu/en/access-data/copyright-and-licences .

In addition to data from the Sentinel satellites, Copernicus offers data from a global network of other satellites (the Copernicus Contributing Missions) and land, air, and marine-based sensors to create a detailed pictures of the Earth ecosystem. Information on the Copernicus Contributing Missions can be found at https://www.copernicus.eu/en/contributing-missions .

How can I access Copernicus data and information? 

The Copernicus Programme developed by the European Commission includes a number of web portals to access Sentinel Reference Products and/or Copernicus Services Reference Products. These are described at a high level below along with the links to actual portals.

Copernicus Space Data Ecosystem (CDSE) Portal

The CDSE portal currently offers access to reference products for Sentinel 1, 2, 3 and 5P and the Copernicus Contributing Missions. The CDSE includes visualisation tools to aid with data search and discover along with a variety of data processing tools. It also offers on-demand processing and access to a cloud processing environment.

The CDSE portal is located at https://dataspace.copernicus.eu where the details of the data access mechanisms available can be found.

WEkEO Portal

WEkEO offers access to reference products for Sentinel 1, 2, 3, 5p and 6, a subset of reference products from the Copernicus Services, and data from a number of other missions (eg. EUMETSAT meteorological satellites). WEkEO includes visualisation tools to aid with data search and discover along with a variety of data processing tools. It also offers access to a cloud processing environment. 

The WEkEO portal is located at https://www.wekeo.eu where the details of the data access mechanisms available can be found.

Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) Portal

The CAMS portal offers access to the reference products generated by the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service that are derived from Sentinel reference products (Sentinel 5p primarily) along with other satellite and ground-based observations. The CAMS portal is intended to support businesses, policy makers and scientists concerning the composition of our atmosphere.

The CAMS portal is located at https://atmosphere.copernicus.eu where the details of the data access mechanisms available can be found

Copernicus Marine Monitoring Service (CMEMS) Portal

The CMEMS portal offers access to the reference products generated by the Copernicus Marine Monitoring Service that are derived from Sentinel reference products (Sentinel 1, 2, 3 and 6) along with other satellite and in-situ observations. The CMEMS portal is intended to support anyone needing state-of-the-art ocean data and information. 

The CMEMS portal is located at https://marine.copernicus.eu where the details of the data access mechanisms available can be found.

Copernicus Land Monitoring Service (CLMS) Portal

The CLMS portal offers access to the reference products generated by the Copernicus Land Monitoring Service that are derived from Sentinel reference products (Sentinel 1 and 2) along with other satellite observations and in-situ measurements. The CLMS portal is intended to provide global information on land cover and its changes, land use, ground motion, vegetation state, water cycle, and Earth surface energy variables.

The CLMS portal is located at https://land.copernicus.eu where the details of the data access mechanisms available can be found.

Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) Portal

The C3S portal offers access to the reference products generated by the Copernicus Climate Change Service that are derived from Sentinel reference products (Sentinel 1 and 3 primarily) along with other satellite observations and in-situ measurements. The C3S portal provides authoritative information concerning past, present, and future (forecasting) global climate.

The C3S portal is located at https://climate.copernicus.eu where the details of the data access mechanisms available can be found

Copernicus Emergency Service  (EMS) Portals

The Copernicus Emergency Service consists of several portals addressing specific topics:

• A mapping service located at https://emergency.copernicus.eu/mapping where authorised users can request the generation of maps derived from Sentinel reference products (Sentinel 1 and 2 primarily) along with other satellite observations and in-situ measurements. Note that the public is only able to access maps from historic requests.
• The European Flood Awareness System (EFAS) located at https://european-flood.emergency.copernicus.eu where maps and hydrological data in Europe derived from multiple sources including Sentinel 1 and 2 reference products are available.
• A Global Flood Awareness System (GloFAS) located at https://www.globalfloods.eu where global flood forecasts derived from numerical weather prediction models are available.
• The European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) located at https://forest-fire.emergency.copernicus.eu where fire danger data for Europe derived from multiple sources, including Sentinel 2 reference products, are available.
• A Global Wildfire Information System (GWIS) located at https://gwis.jrc.ec.europa.eu where global fire danger data is made available.
• The European Drought Observatory (EDO) located at https://drought.emergency.copernicus.eu/edov2 where drought data and maps for Europe are available derived from multiple sources, including Sentinel 2 and 3 reference products.
• A Global Drought Observatory (GDO) located at https://drought.emergency.copernicus.eu/gdo where global data and maps are available.

Copernicus Security Service Portal 

The Copernicus Security Service consists of several portals addressing specific topics:

• Monitoring the European Union’s external borders is addressed at https://www.frontex.europa.eu 
• Maritime surveillance is addressed at https://www.emsa.europa.eu/copernicus.html 
• Support to EU External and Security Actions (SESA), located at https://sesa.security.copernicus.eu , assists the EU and its Member States in monitoring the implementation of EU law and addressing security challenges that arise.   

The Copernicus Security Services provide limited public access to data or information. These sites are primarily intended for institutional users such as law enforcement. Like all the Copernicus services, the security services make use of Sentinel reference products (primarily Sentinel 1 and 2) and other data sources to achieve their objectives. 

None of the portals for the Copernicus Services offer direct access to Sentinel Reference Products.

Because of the Copernicus open data policy, reference products and products derived from these reference products are available from a number of other web portals that are outside the control of the Copernicus Programme. 

Why should I access the data through the portals of the Copernicus Programme?

The portals of the Copernicus Programme offer a trustworthy, well-documented, and reliable source of timely high-quality data in the form of reference products.

The portals of the Copernicus Programme are the publicly exposed part of a large data ecosystem built on the Sentinel satellite missions. Sentinel Reference Products are generated by Core Ground Segments and Copernicus Services Reference Products are generated by the Copernicus Services using as input the Sentinel Reference Products and other data sources. These reference products represent high-quality data that is generated in an operational environment subject to configuration control and monitoring. Reference products can be clearly identified and, in many cases, authenticated by the user.

The following diagram illustrates the data access options that exist outside the Copernicus Programme.

These portals have been classified as:

• European Collaborating Ground Segment Portals: These are typically mirror collections of Sentinel Reference Products built by national entities, covering national areas of interest, and including specific services or themes. These facilities receive reference products from the core ground segments and/or the Copernicus services subject to a formal agreement. These portals may be of interest for a user interested in accessing data in their native language, using the services available, or potentially better access speeds depending on the users location. While these portals operate outside the Copernicus Programme, it should be noted that the development of some of these systems were assisted by EU funding.  More information on these portals can be found at https://sentinels.copernicus.eu/web/sentinel/missions/collaborative .

• International Collaborating Ground Segment Portals: These are similar in concept to their European counterparts but are intended to serve their regional users. Like the European collaborating ground segments, these facilities receive reference products from the core ground segments and/or the Copernicus services subject to a formal agreement. These portals were typically created to facilitate access to Copernicus data where good network connections to Europe were challenging. These portals are operated by national agencies but some received EU funding to assist in their initial development. More information on these portals can be found at https://sentinels.copernicus.eu/web/sentinel/missions/international-cooperation 

• Commercial Portals: These typically offer access to reference products along with pay-for-use services that may include cloud computing, access to commercial satellite data, and various tool sets.

• Commercial Derived Data Provider Portals: These typically offer pay-for-use services and products that derive from Copernicus reference products and other data sources. These portals typically have a specific theme such as marine applications or asset management.

• In addition to the four groups of portals above, there are also a number of governmental organisation portals that offer access to a wide variety of data including Sentinel data. Two examples of these appear in the illustration above. The EUMETSAT User Portal, found at https://user.eumetsat.int/data-access , provides links to all EUMETSAT’s data access mechanisms (including the WEkEO portal). Using these data access mechanisms one can access a large data catalogue including the Sentinel Reference Products. The NASA Earth Data Portal, found at https://www.earthdata.nasa.gov , similarly offers access to a large catalogue of data, primarily from NASA missions but also including products derived from Sentinel data.