Destination Earth – Digital Twin of the Earth System to support local adaptation to extreme weather and climate change challenges

The Destination Earth (DestinE) initiative of the European Commission aims to build a digital replica of our planet to enhance our capability to respond and adapt to the environmental challenges posed by extreme events and climate change. After two years of intense developments through a truly European collaborative effort implemented by the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), the European Space Agency (ESA), and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) together with many partners across Europe, the novel information system DestinE is setting up will gradually open its gates to users. Its innovative elements will now continuously evolve and gradually transition towards operations.

In this talk, we will overview of the DestinE system focusing on parts ECMWF is delivering together with its 90 partners across Europe: the Digital Twin Engine and the first two high-priority digital twins, which are at the heart of the DestinE system, reflecting both on the key achievements so far and the next steps. The talk will also present the possibility of supporting global adaptation measures as part of the EU-US AI for the Public Good activities and gives an outlook on work planned together with NOAA on improving tropical cyclone forecasts and predicting urban heat stress.