By recognizing the categories of use, and the common problems within those categories that EO can help address, organizations can prioritize the potential applications. This is the first step towards articulating a value proposition and implementing EO at scale. However, simply experiencing a common issue that spatial data can address does not necessarily mean that the optimal fit is an EO solution. To determine if EO can contribute to an organization’s strategic objectives, the identified problem should exhibit certain features that make EO a particularly suitable solution. Organizations looking to extract the most value from comprehensive EO solutions that rely primarily on satellite-based remote sensing can do so by evaluating a given problem across several dimensions, including: geographical coverage, parameter sensitivity, location of interest, response needs and time series. Asking the following questions can help clarify when EO will deliver the most value:1.2 Features of a problem best suited for EO Coverage: Is this a large-scale issue requiring consistent, comparable data across geographically dispersed locations? Localized For site-specific measurements or small areas where broad geographic consistency is not required, ground sensors provide high granularity and pinpoint accuracy, but are limited in cross-location comparability.Regional As coverage needs expand to regional or sub-regional scales with specific conditions, drones or aerial surveys can provide detailed and coherent data within a mid-sized area. For example, comparing environmental health across different wetlands within a state.Broad-scale For geographically dispersed phenomena or expansive regions such as deserts, oceanic zones or countries, satellites offer the most practical solution, consistently capturing broad-scale data that is directly comparable across sites. Parameter sensitivity: Does the problem require precise measurements, or will broader, less detailed data suffice? High sensitivity For highly sensitive parameters, such as specific pollutants or soil nutrients that require contact, ground sensors and sampling are best. There are many phenomena that can be measured on the ground but not directly from space, such as pH (potential of hydrogen) levels.Moderate sensitivity For moderate sensitivity across regional scales, drones with multispectral sensors can detect subtle environmental changes such as invasive species across diverse habitats.Low sensitivity For broad, less granular parameters, satellites provide extensive monitoring, detecting large-scale patterns like sea-surface temperatures, with capabilities improving at rapid rates. The Executive’s Playbook on Earth Observation: Strategic Insights for a Changing Planet 11

The Executive%E2%80%99s Playbook on Earth Observation 2025