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REMOTE SENSING ACTIVITIES IN EUROPE: AN OVERVIEW 
V. Cappellini 
Dipartimento di Ingegneria Elettronica 
Universit di Firenze 
Firenze, Italy 
ABSTRACT 
A general overview of remote sensing activities in Europe is presented. Activities developed by 
the European Community (CEC) and European Space Agency (ESA) are synthetically presented, 
with reference to the CEC Joint Research Center initiatives in Ispra and ESA space programs in 
the remote sensing area. 
In particular activités in the framework of the European Association of remote Sensing 
Laboratories (EARSeL) are considered as cooperation of activities developed in national 
Laboratories and under different national Associations and Societies. 
Subjects covered are regarding all the aspects of remote sensing: aerospace sensors (in the visible, 
multi spectral, infrared, microwave spectral bands); data receiving and collection stations at 
ground; data correction (geometrical and radiometrical corrections); image processing (filtering, 
compression, pattern recognition); data fusion (integration of data from different sensors); 
geographic information systems (GISs); production of user maps. Telematics applications to the 
environment are also considered, where different remote sensing data (together ground data) are 
collected from the receiving and measuring stations and sent to central Control Centers, which 
hence distribute the processed data and maps to the final users (Administrations, industries, 
farmers, etc.). 
The new policy of EARSeL of establishing Special Interest Groups (SIGs) is outlined. Some SIGs 
already established and/or planned are presented: "Marine waters, inland waters and coastal 
zones", "Land Ice and Snow", "Land Applications", "Forestry and Land-Use Planning", 
"Developing Countries", "Disaster Monitoring and Prediction". 
The activities of EARSeL are diffused through the Newsletter and by organising the annual 
Symposium and several Workshops, spread out in all Europe on different important areas of 
remote sensing. 
In conclusion the actual interest for a strong cooperation between different Institutions and 
Associations active in remote sensing in Europe is outlined by using the opportunities of EEC - 
ESA programs and activities developed by EARSeL.