Training of trainers: a new era of earth observation has begun at the University of Sopron

The University of Sopron, the Green University of Hungary, once again proves that it is open to the call of new times and is able to lead the way in the field of technologies shaping the future. With the support of the European Space Agency (ESA), within the framework of the HunEdu project, a special “training the trainers” program has been launched, in which international experts will share their knowledge with Hungarian educators and researchers.

The training launched within the framework of the HunEdu project focuses on the modern processing of data collected from Earth by satellites. The program is implemented in collaboration with the University of Sopron, the University of Óbuda and DATelite Kft. and combines the tools of geospatial information, image processing and artificial intelligence. The goal is to create a higher education system in Hungary that is able to prepare students to handle and analyze huge amounts of data coming from space.

With the help of satellite images, the health of forests, water shortages in agricultural areas, the effects of climate change, but also transport or tourism trends can be monitored in real time. However, data processing is only possible with the most modern, cloud-based technologies and methods supported by artificial intelligence.

The first, one-week training was organized by the University of Sopron, where researchers from renowned institutions such as Wageningen University in the Netherlands, the German Research Center for Earth Sciences, and the University of Wisconsin in the United States will give lectures and exercises. Among the participants, lecturers and researchers from several Hungarian universities – including BME, ELTE, Óbuda University, Pécs and Debrecen University – are also present, in person or online.

Dr. Kornél Czimber, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Forestry Engineering at the University of Sopron and the main organizer of the event, highlighted: “Earth observation has now become a strategically important area. We have an increasing amount and resolution of satellite images at our disposal, which can only be processed effectively with modern technologies. We need to train professionals who are able to analyze, interpret and utilize this data in practice.”