Among the greatest strengths of Earth Observation (EO) is its universal application. This aspect is manifested in two ways. Firstly, EO satellites allow the monitoring of a wide variety of natural phenomena and operational processes across the whole globe. Secondly, the decisions or actions that organisations dealing with such phenomena or operations must take are [...]
The enormous increase of Earth Observation data over the past few years is bringing tremendous business opportunities for start-ups and SMEs but also calls for a fundamental paradigm shift. Thus, making the most of Big EO data, requires disrupting the traditional workflows whereby downloaded datasets are processed locally. Instead, through a multitude of web-based platforms, [...]
Since the advent of the Copernicus Sentinels era and the rise of new, venture-backed business models relying on large fleets of small satellites, more and more data is becoming available. To unlock the insights provided by this unprecedented volume of diverse data, users need robust access, powerful computation and innovative processing methods. This need can [...]
“Faster, Higher, Stronger” is not only an inspirational call to start-ups and young entrepreneurs to develop and launch EO-based services in the market. It is also the reality experienced today at the interface of Earth Observation with Big Data: Higher – the volume of Earth Observation data has grown almost exponentially in the past few [...]
Pumped hydroelectric energy storage is a type of hydroelectric energy storage used by electric power systems for load balancing. The energy is stored in the form of gravitational potential energy of water, pumped from a lower elevation reservoir to a higher elevation. During periods of high demand of electricity, the stored water is released through [...]
Current trends move to smarter turbines and plants. Smarter turbines are able to sense and optimize energy capture while knowing the state of the turbine’s health. For instance, the wind farm model developed by GE pairs 2-MW wind turbines with a digital twin modelling system that can assemble up to 20 turbine configurations at every [...]
Wind energy production through wind turbine functioning is being boosted by the manufacture of longer blades and taller towers. Turbines are evolving to more powerful, efficient, durable and cost-effective components. Research in important innovations will allow easier and cheaper turbine manufacturing, intelligent turbines will be created capable of collecting and interpreting real-time data, and wind [...]
Solar Water Heating Systems (SWHS) are the most widely used type of Solar Heating and Cooling Systems. These systems pass cold water through a pipe that goes into a heat exchanger. From the exchanger, solar collectors carry heat transfer fluid, which is heated from the incoming infrared radiation from the sun. Then, it is the [...]
The market of solar photovoltaics has experienced an important expansion in the last years. The costs of silicon solar cells have dropped significantly, so solar photovoltaics systems have become easily obtainable for house owners. New solutions and technologies are continuously being studied. Photo by Pixabay from Pexels Solar roofs are one of the most interesting [...]
Also known as solar thermal energy, Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) has evolved to be used mainly for industrial or utility purposes, being gradually becoming an advantageous alternative to the PV. Currently, Spain and the United States are the world’s leading countries applying these technologies, with installed capacities of 2.2 gigawatts (GW) and 1.8 gigawatts (GW), [...]
