The range of data and products derived from the EUMETSAT Polar System (EPS) are invaluable for operational meteorology:

• Temperature and moisture sounding for Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP).
• All weather capability.
• Troposphere, stratosphere, and troposphere/stratosphere interactions.
• Imagery of clouds and land/ocean surfaces.
• Air-sea interactions.

Activities within climate monitoring are related to the atmosphere, land surface and ocean surface. These activities include:

• Monitoring global atmospheric temperatures and humidity data.
• Monitoring the seasonal variations in ozone and tracking any developments.
• Providing data for vegetation indices, displaying the changing vegetation on the surface of the Earth. These indices are used to predict crop yields for economic forecasting and for famine predictions.
• Maps of snow and ice cover, used by, for example, in transport and tourism industries.
• Ocean monitoring — as key indicator of climate changes, Metop is measuring sea surface temperatures and low-level wind vectors over the oceans.

The data services from EPS are provided by the Metop and NOAA polar orbiting satellites. These include instrument direct readout and generated products derived from the global data dumps and regional direct readout acquisition.

Direct Readout

Satellite instrument data readout, beamed directly to an AHRPT reception station located within the view of the passing satellite. The Metop Direct Readout Service provide local user stations with the real-time transmission of data, limited to the instantaneous sub-satellite observation. The data source is the satellite as it passes over the user's field of view.

Global Data Service

Level 1 and Level 2 products derived from the Metop and NOAA satellite data, are processed within the EUMETSAT Application Ground Segment. These products  have a global geographical coverage, and a delivery timeliness of 135 minutes (Level 1) and 180 minutes (Level 2) after the time of measurement.  For the full range of global products, consult the Product Navigator.

Regional Data Service

Processed Level 0, Level 1 and Level 2 products derived from the Metop and NOAA satellite data, with a limited geographical coverage, but with an increased delivery timeliness of ca. 30 minutes after the time of measurement. The Regional Data Service is called the EUMETSAT Advanced Retransmission Service (EARS), and comprises of ATOVS, AVHRR, ASCAT and IASI data. For the full range of global products, consult the Product Navigator.

Service Registration

Access to EPS near real-time and offline data and products typically involves an initial registration process, via the EUMETSAT Earth Observation Portal.