Enriching Earth observation datasets through semantics for climate change applications: The EIFFEL ontology

Abstract

Satellites and other tools used to observe Earth provide a lot of data that can help us make decisions, like predicting the weather or understanding climate change. However, these large collections of data are often disorganized and described differently by different people, which makes it hard for scientists and researchers to find and use the information they need. To solve this problem, the paper introduces the EIFFEL Ontology (EIFF-O). This is a new system designed to organize and link Earth observation data in a way that makes it easier to find and use. It does this by creating common categories and connections between different data sets. Three important features of EIFF-O are: It focuses on climate change, helping to categorize important climate data. It connects the data to global goals for sustainable development, which helps in achieving specific environmental targets. It links these data sets to the wider internet in a way that makes them easier to share and understand. The EIFF-O system is freely available for anyone to use and comes with tools that help developers quickly implement it in their projects. This makes it easier for everyone to access and benefit from Earth observation data.