Space Working Party
Agenda
About ECMWF
The European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), is a world leader in Numerical Weather Predictions providing high-quality data for weather forecasts and environmental monitoring. As an intergovernmental organisation, we collaborate internationally to serve our members and the wider community with global weather predictions, data and training activities that are critical to contribute to a safe and thriving society.
The success of our activities depends on the funding and partnerships of our 35 Member and Co-operating States who provide the support and direction of our work. Our talented staff together with the international scientific community, and our powerful supercomputing capabilities, are at the core of a 24/7 research and operational centre with a focus on medium and long-range predictions. We also hold one of the largest meteorological data archives in the world.
In addition, ECMWF has established a strong partnership with the European Union and has been entrusted with the implementation and operation of the Climate Change and Atmosphere Monitoring Services of the Copernicus Programme, as well as being an important contributor to the Copernicus Emergency Management Service, which led by the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission. ECMWF is also a key partner in the development of digital twins’ capabilities for the Destination Earth initiative alongside ESA and EUMETSAT. Other areas of work include High Performance Computing and the development of digital tools that enable ECMWF’s provision of data and products covering weather, climate, air quality, fire and flood prediction and monitoring.
The visit
ECMWF is delighted to welcome the Working Party on Space and some esteemed guests to its data centre in Bologna on 13 March 2025. The visit will be the occasion to present the main activities of ECMWF to the Space Attachés and an opportunity to have a first-hand experience of its data centre comprising ECMWF’s operational High-Performance Computing facility and the world’s largest archive of weather and climate data that the Centre curates and serves to its users.
Draft agenda
Arrival 12 March 2025 Bologna from 17:30 UTC at the hotel.
| Wednesday 12 March | ||
| 18:00 | 19:00 | Possible Cultural Tour of the Bologna Plaza |
| 19:00 | 20:00 | Drinks reception |
| 20:00 | 21:30 | Dinner at the hotel |
| Thursday 13 March | ||
| 08:15 | 08:45 | Bus transfer from hotel in Bologna |
| 08:45 | 09:00 | Arrival at ECMWF premises |
| 09:00 | 09:15 |
Welcome addresses Dr. Florence Rabier (ECMWF Director General), Martyna Perek (Space Working Party Chair). |
| 09:15 | 10:30 |
Serving and supporting Member and Cooperating States for Global Numerical Prediction since 1975 This block will introduce the delegates to ECMWF and to the range of its activities. It will showcase how the Centre leverages european (and non-european) Earth Observation to provide impactful data and services to society, rooted in cutting-edge science. This will cover ECMWF’s core activities in numerical Weather Forecasting, including current developments using AI and some of its cutting edge activities as part of the Destination Earth programme. It willl also introduce the Centre’s engagement with the Copernicus programme and highlight some of its contributions to the Copernicus Emergency Management Service regarding flood and fire forecasting. |
| 10:30 | 11:00 |
Break |
| 11:00 | 11:45 |
Visit of ECMWF Data Centre Visitors will be guided through the Data Centre, including the High Performance Computers, the main ECMWF archive and the common cloud infrastructure hosting the European Weather Cloud, the Climate Data Store and the Atmosphere Data Store. |
| 12:00 | 13:30 |
Working lunch and interactive displays & experiences This will be an informal working lunch allowing delegates to discuss with ECMWF participants. There will be also |
| 13:30 | 14:15 |
The Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) CAMS started in 2014 as an operational Service, based on more than a decade of Research and Innovation organised by ECMWF working together with numerous entities distributed in Europe. Key products areas include air quality, solar energy and emissions of greenhouse gases with strong links to European policies. |
| 14:15 | 15:00 |
The Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) C3S is the largest of all Copernicus Services, providing |
| 15:00 | 15:30 |
Conclusions |
Practical aspects
These will be detailed shortly.
- Registrations
- Travel to Italy
- Hotel in Bologna
- Bus transfers within Bologna