#42: Communicating Earth Observation and Climate with Prof Chris Rapley, University College London

TerraWatch Space Podcast

Today, I am speaking with Prof. Chris Rapley from University College London.

From working on Earth observations missions to study the polar regions with radar altimetry instruments to actually researching there as the director of British Antarctic Survey, Prof Chris Rapley is an accomplished scientist. He was also the Director of the Science Museum in the UK for a few years, and is now currently Professor of Climate Science at University College London.

Chris is also the member of the European Space Agency Director General's High Level Advisory Group and the UK Parliamentary and Scientific Committee.

His current interests actually lie in the communication of climate science and that's why I wanted to have him on the podcast, given communication is something that we need to improve on in the Earth observation sector.

In this episode, we discuss the use of satellite data for climate, whether the decision makers and end users care where the data comes from, how we can bridge the gap in communicating Earth Observation, the importance of a multidisciplinary approach, leveraging climate as a narrative to communicate about the significance of satellites and more.

Chris Rapley's Bio

Prof. Chris Rapley's Wikipedia

---

01:33: Chris’ (fascinating) story
13:17: Use of satellite data on ground, while Chris was researching in Antarctica
15:05: Satellite data for climate - does anyone care where the data comes from?
22:22: The importance of a multidisciplinary approach in Earth observation
27:47: The dichotomy of the need to communicate about EO vs EO being in the background
30:20: Bridging the gap in communication in EO
38:43: Leveraging on climate as a communication narrative for EO
42:28: What can we improve on as an industry in terms of communication about EO and climate?
46:03: What are some reasons to be optimistic about climate?