IRIDE, the Euro-Italian Earth Observation Program: Overview, Current Progress, Global Expectations, and Recommendations

Recently, the Italian government has announced IRIDE, a new Earth observation program. IRIDE will likely be completed by 2026 under the management of the European Space Agency (ESA) and with the support of the Italian Space Agency (ASI). IRIDE is an end-to-end system made up of a set of sub-constellations (with radar and optical sensors) and services intended for the Italian Public Administration. The aims of this work are twofold: firstly, to disseminate information within the scientific community regarding the IRIDE program by highlighting key constellation characteristics as outlined in the latest ASI technical communications; secondly, to put forth valuable recommendations for the global applicability of this data, adopting a bottom-up perspective.