Working Group 3 (WG3) has spent its first year tackling one of EARLICOST’s most outward-facing challenges: how to better integrate and interact with industry and end-users. Structured around three subgroups: Satellite Community Engagement (WG3a), Modelling Community Engagement (WG3b), and Industry Engagement (WG3c)

For this year, WG3 has focused on mapping stakeholder needs and laying the groundwork for lasting dialogue between the lidar research community and those who use its data.

Identifying the Core Challenges:

WG3’s activities are framed around a central question: How can the lidar community better integrate and interact with industry and end-users? 

The group identified several current limitations standing in the way. There is no common platform for interaction between the lidar community, industry, and end-users, and communication of lidar system needs and emerging technologies to industry remains limited. Dedicated forums for knowledge exchange and collaboration are lacking, and awareness among end-users of lidar capabilities and atmospheric profiling products is often insufficient. Guidance on the correct use of lidar data is also limited across key application areas, including satellite calibration and validation (Cal/Val), model verification and data assimilation, early warning systems, aviation safety, air quality monitoring, and climate projections.

Approach for Engagement:

To address these gaps, WG3 has outlined a clear set of calls to action. These include establishing a Task Force with industry representatives, customers, and scientific advisors; organising forums for direct communication with industry and end-users; and promoting knowledge transfer from EARLICOST research into the lidar technology market. The group also aims to support the optimisation of lidar data quality while reducing costs for end-users, gather industry feedback to guide technological innovation, and engage end-users to identify better communication pathways. Further priorities include improving operational protocols for atmospheric modelling and satellite applications, and strengthening collaboration to maximise the impact and uptake of EARLICOST’s outcomes.

This work follows a twofold approach: engaging industry to drive innovative new hardware and software, and engaging end-users to maximise the practical use of lidar measurements. 

In practice, this means establishing dedicated task forces and forums for continuous dialogue throughout the project, facilitating knowledge transfer on lidar technology needs and best-practice guidelines, and promoting the uptake of EARLICOST outcomes across satellite applications, modelling, aviation, air quality, and climate services. 

Major Activities of Year 1:

WG3’s first year began with a kick-off virtual meeting on 22 July 2026, followed by a survey to gauge expressions of interest across the group’s subgroups. The group has also been developing end-user and industry hubs, in coordination with WG4.

Results Emerged from the Survey:

The subgroup interest survey drew 51 respondents, with 51% expressing interest in satellite engagement, 24% in modelling engagement, and 25% in industry engagement. Among the 27 respondents from the modelling community, air quality forecasting emerged as the leading application area at 29%, followed by model evaluation at 33%, data assimilation at 13%, climate modelling at 11%, and other applications specified separately at 14%.

Within the satellite community, EarthCARE was by far the most widely used mission, cited by 77% of respondents, followed by EUMETSAT (33%), CALIPSO (31%), Aeolus (28%), and other missions specified separately (24%).

Among industry respondents, lidar was the most commonly supported instrument, with 46% of companies providing related products or software, followed by weather stations (13%), spectrometers (9%), sun photometers (5%), radar (4%), and other instruments (23%).

Moving forward to Year 2:

WG3’s roadmap extends across the full lifetime of EARLICOST, with a series of deliverables planned through 2029. During the next reporting period, WG3 will focus on engaging both industrial stakeholders and potential end-users to better understand their technological and operational needs. Two workshops will be organized with industrial users to identify emerging technological requirements and define actions to support innovation, followed by a report and guidelines addressing hardware and software evolution needs. In parallel, two workshops will bring together potential end-users from sectors including satellite applications, modelling, forecasting, aviation, and health; these stakeholders will also be engaged through the SESAR innovation days in December 2026, providing an additional opportunity to validate the identified requirements, exchange with the wider aviation innovation community, and disseminate the outcomes of WG3 activities. The outcomes of these activities will inform a report on the accuracy, uncertainty, and spatiotemporal resolution requirements of different user communities, as well as the development of practical guidelines for satellite and modelling end-users.