The Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) is an international organisation charged with coordinating international civil spaceborne missions designed to observe and study planet Earth. Comprising 41 space agencies and other national and international organisations, CEOS is recognised as the major international forum for the coordination of Earth observation satellite programs and for interaction of these programs with users of satellite data worldwide.
CEOS was created in 1984 in response to a recommendation from the Economic Summit of Industrialised Nations Working Group on Growth, Technology, and Employment~Rs Panel of Experts on Satellite Remote Sensing. This group recognised the multidisciplinary nature of satellite Earth observation and the value of coordination across all proposed missions. Convened under the original name of International Earth Observations Satellite Committee (IEOSC), the organisation combined the previously existing groups for Coordination on Ocean Remote-Sensing Satellites (CORSS) and Coordination on Land Observing Satellites (CLOS) and established a broad framework for coordinating all spaceborne Earth observation missions.
Individual participating agencies make their best efforts to implement CEOS recommendations. The main goal of CEOS is to ensure that critical scientific questions relating to Earth observation and global change are covered and that satellite missions do not unnecessarily overlap each other. The three primary objectives of CEOS are as follows:
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To optimise benefits of spaceborne Earth observations through co-operation of its participants in mission planning and in development of compatible data products, formats, services, applications, and policies;
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To serve as a focal point for international coordination of space-related Earth observation activities; and
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To exchange policy and technical information to encourage complementarity and compatibility of observation and data exchange systems.
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