Environment ministry to host Cheollian 2 satellite data conference in Busan

South Korea will hold a two-day conference in Busan this week on combined uses of data from the Cheollian 2 satellites, bringing together about 100 satellite and remote-sensing experts, the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment said Tuesday.

The eighth Cheollian 2 Convergence Utilization Conference opens Oct. 21 at the Paradise Hotel in Haeundae District, Busan. The National Institute of Environmental Research, which is holding the event with the National Meteorological Satellite Center, the Korea Hydrographic and Oceanographic Agency and the Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology, said the meeting will share research results and set directions for the development and use of the next geostationary satellite, Cheollian 6.

Attendance will include the four agencies that make up the Cheollian 2 convergence council, along with the Korea AeroSpace Administration, Pusan National University and Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology. The council has coordinated calibration and combined use of observation data from Cheollian 2A, which monitors weather, and Cheollian 2B, which covers ocean and environmental observations, since 2020.

The program runs in three sessions: improvements in the quality of Cheollian 2 data and convergence research, including work on fusing environmental and ocean satellite data and on artificial intelligence and deep-learning methods for correction and higher resolution; development and use strategies for follow-up geostationary satellites, with the space agency, the hydrographic agency, the environmental research institute and the meteorological satellite center each presenting their plans; and a panel discussion on maximizing the combined effect of satellite data, responding to the climate crisis and promoting the private space industry.

The institute's Environmental Satellite Center will present a case in which deep learning was used to improve Cheollian 2 observations, along with results from the geostationary environmental satellite and plans for a successor. Working-level meetings on the second day, Oct. 22, will cover data exchange, convergence applications and calibration.

"Climate and environmental change works through a combination of factors, so using environmental, ocean and weather satellite data together allows us to understand these phenomena in more depth," said Kim Young-woo, director of the National Institute of Environmental Research. "We will advance AI-based satellite data convergence technology to increase the usability of observation data and effectively provide the scientific information needed to respond to the climate crisis."