The ESA GSE (GMES Services Element) - Geo-hazard Risk Management - Terrafirma is based upon new hybrid radar satellite technology that can now for the first time measure subtle ground motions over whole cities or regions in one, non-invasive process. Furthermore, as the radar data has been regularly collected since 1991, measurements can be made back in time.<br /><br />Terrafirma provides three types of product:<br /><br /><ul><li> Historical measurements of ground motion using the satellite data in archive for applications such as subsidence risk assessment and landslide inventory mapping. These are used to assess ground motion trends over the last decade or so, and are useful for prioritising a more expensive ground-based survey or Terrafirma monitoring product if necessary.</li><br /><li> Monitoring Services: Subsidence and landslide monitoring services using new satellite data acquisitions to update an historical product for latest measurements. Such products might be used to monitor the predicted zone of influence of a tunnelling project, or effects of water table change.</li> <br /><li> Higher level Interpreted products that provide engineering geological context to assist in the understanding of ground motion causes. These are used for a variety of purposes such as subsidence causal analysis and modelling / forecasting analysis, landslide susceptibility assessment and other landslide risk assessment. Higher level Terrafirma products are interpreted by geological experts using other pertinent data at their disposal to provide a first analysis of the causes of the motion observed and possible forecasts as to future behaviour.</li></ul><br />Terrafirma has a core group of users including:<ul> <br /><li> British Geological Survey (BGS - UK)</li> <br /><li> Bureau de Recherches Géologiques at Minières (BRGM - F)</li> <br /><li> Institute of Applied Geoscience (TNO - NL)</li> <br /><li> Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC)</li> <br /><li> European Federation of Geologists (EFG)</li> <br /><li> Ove Arup (civil engineering consultancy - UK)</li> <br /><li> Centro Elettrotecnico Sperimentale Italiano (CESI - Italian utility provider)</li> <br /></ul> <br />
