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| CaribSCAN | |
|---|---|
| Name | CaribSCAN |
| Mission type | Remote sensing / Environmental monitoring |
| Operator | Caribbean Regional Science Consortium |
| Launch | 2028 (planned) |
| Orbit | Sun-synchronous (planned) |
| Instruments | Multispectral imager, hyperspectral scanner, LIDAR altimeter, SAR |
CaribSCAN is a regional Earth-observation initiative focused on comprehensive environmental and socio-ecological monitoring across the Caribbean basin. The program integrates satellite remote sensing, airborne campaigns, in situ networks and regional data platforms to support decision-making in climate resilience, coastal management, disaster response and biodiversity conservation. CaribSCAN aims to coordinate scientific activities among Caribbean states, international agencies and research institutions to produce open-access geospatial products for policymakers and practitioners.
CaribSCAN was conceived to complement initiatives such as Sentinel-2, Landsat 8, MODIS, ICESat-2, SMAP and Copernicus by providing higher-resolution and regionally tailored observations for the Caribbean archipelago, including the Greater Antilles, Lesser Antilles, Bahamas, Turks and Caicos Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, Jamaica and Cayman Islands. The program engages institutions like the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), United Nations Environment Programme, Inter-American Development Bank, World Meteorological Organization, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction and national agencies such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and United States Geological Survey. CaribSCAN also coordinates with university partners including University of the West Indies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Imperial College London, Stanford University, University of Cambridge, Columbia University, University of Oxford, Plymouth Marine Laboratory, University of Miami, Florida International University, McGill University, University of Toronto, University of California, Berkeley, Princeton University, Yale University, ETH Zurich, University of Edinburgh, Australian National University, University of Cape Town, University of São Paulo, National Autonomous University of Mexico, Tecnológico de Monterrey, King's College London, Duke University, University of British Columbia, University of the West Indies Mona Campus, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, University of the Virgin Islands, Curaçao University of Applied Sciences, University of the West Indies St. Augustine.
CaribSCAN targets quantification and monitoring of coastal risk, coral-reef health, mangrove extent, seagrass ecosystems, terrestrial land-cover change, freshwater availability, sediment transport, hurricane impacts, sea-level rise and carbon fluxes. Objectives align with global frameworks including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Convention on Biological Diversity and the Sustainable Development Goals while supporting regional strategies from CARICOM, Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States and Association of Caribbean States. Scientific themes draw on methodologies used by Global Mangrove Watch, International Coral Reef Initiative, Group on Earth Observations, GEOSS, CEOS and datasets from NASA, ESA, JAXA, CSA (Canadian Space Agency), ISRO and Aerospace Corporation partners. CaribSCAN's targets include tracking coral bleaching events analogous to datasets from NOAA Coral Reef Watch, assessing land-use trajectories similar to Hansen et al. deforestation mapping, and estimating blue-carbon stocks following protocols from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services.
The mission concept integrates satellite sensors (multispectral, hyperspectral, synthetic aperture radar), airborne LIDAR and ship-based sonar surveys. Instrumentation mirrors capabilities deployed by missions such as WorldView-3, PlanetScope, PRISMA, EnMAP, Sentinel-1, TerraSAR-X, ICESat, GEDI, CALIPSO and airborne platforms used by USGS, NOAA Aircraft Operations Center and academic flight campaigns at Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory. Methodologies include radiometric calibration routines from CEOS Working Group on Calibration and Validation, atmospheric correction algorithms implemented in tools like ACOLITE, Sen2Cor, Py6S and processing chains inspired by Google Earth Engine, ESA SNAP and ESA BEAT. Field validation protocols reference standards from Society for Conservation Biology, IUCN, RMS (Risk Management Solutions), Red Cross/Red Crescent Climate Centre and marine survey methods used by NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service and CI (Conservation International).
CaribSCAN will produce georeferenced mosaics, time-series of habitat extent, change-detection layers, hazard maps, bathymetry, shoreline change metrics, turbidity indices, chlorophyll concentrations, sea-surface temperature, coastal inundation models and blue-carbon inventories. Processing employs algorithms from Random Forest (machine learning), Support Vector Machine, Convolutional Neural Network, Deep Learning frameworks validated against in situ networks from CARPHA (Caribbean Public Health Agency), CERMES (UWI Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies), Institute of Marine Affairs Trinidad and Tobago and citizen science initiatives like Reef Check, iNaturalist, Eye on the Reef. Provenance and metadata follow ISO 19115, OGC (Open Geospatial Consortium) standards and data sharing aligns with Open Geospatial Data Foundation practices. Products will be accessible through regional data portals modeled after Copernicus Open Access Hub, NASA Earthdata, NOAA Digital Coast and research repositories hosted by Zenodo and Figshare.
Planned phases include design, integration, launch, commissioning, operations and data distribution with milestones coordinated among regional space agencies and commercial launch providers such as SpaceX, Arianespace, Rocket Lab, Blue Origin and Virgin Orbit. Timelines will be informed by lessons from missions like Landsat 9, Sentinel-2B, ICESat-2 and multi-agency collaborations exemplified by Joint Polar Satellite System initiatives. Ground segments will utilize facilities similar to Svalbard Satellite Station, Punta Arenas ground station, NOAA Satellite Operations Facility and university-based receiving stations across Barbados, Trinidad, Jamaica, Curaçao and Puerto Rico.
Funding and partnerships span multilateral lenders and donors including the World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, European Union, Caribbean Development Bank, philanthropic entities like the Gates Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies and bilateral agencies such as USAID, DFID (UK Department for International Development), Global Affairs Canada, Agence Française de Développement, KfW and JICA. Scientific collaborations include networks from PAGES (Past Global Changes Project), IOCCG (International Ocean Colour Coordinating Group), WCRP (World Climate Research Programme), IGBP (International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme), SCAR (Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research) and regional research consortia like CERMES and the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility.
CaribSCAN aims to inform coastal-zone planning for municipalities in Kingston, Port-au-Prince, Havana, Santo Domingo, San Juan, Bridgetown, Castries, Port of Spain, Basseterre and Fort-de-France; support disaster response for events such as Hurricane Maria, Hurricane Irma, Hurricane Dorian and historic storms cataloged in the International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship; contribute to coral-reef restoration projects led by The Nature Conservancy, World Wildlife Fund, Reef Ball Foundation and Coral Restoration Foundation; and assist fisheries management used by CARIFORUM and regional ministries. Economic, social and ecological outcomes will be evaluated against indicators from UNDP, FAO, ILO, World Bank and OECD to support resilience, livelihoods and conservation across the Caribbean basin.
Category:Earth observation Category:Caribbean science