User needs and requirements impacting the long term preservation of earth observation data

Within the past 40 years a large number of unique Earth observation datasets have been acquired and archived by space agencies and other Earth observation data producers worldwide. These time series, and in particular those based on radiometrically similar sensors, constitute a valuable humankind asset. They allow for the first time to perform long-term analyses of environmental phenomena based on Earth observation. However, in order for the data to be useful now and for future generations, archive owners, in addition to sustainable funding, need specific and precise requirements from data users in order to design and operate archives which serve well current and future generations of users.