Evaluation of the SBAS InSAR Service of the European Space Agency's Geohazard Exploitation Platform (GEP)

The analysis of remote sensing data to assess geohazards is being improved by web-based
platforms and collaborative projects, such as the Geohazard Exploitation Platform (GEP) of the
European Space Agency (ESA). This paper presents the evaluation of a surface velocity map that is
generated by this platform. The map was produced through an unsupervised Multi-temporal InSAR
(MTI) analysis applying the Parallel-SBAS (P-SBAS) algorithm to 25 ENVISAT satellite images from
the South of Spain that were acquired between 2003 and 2008. This analysis was carried out using a
service implemented in the GEP called "SBAS InSAR". Thanks to the map that was generated by
the SBAS InSAR service, we identified processes not documented so far; provided new monitoring
data in places affected by known ground instabilities; defined the area affected by these instabilities;
and, studied a case where GEP could have been able to help in the forecast of a slope movement
reactivation. This amply demonstrates the reliability and usefulness of the GEP, and shows how
web-based platforms may enhance the capacity to identify, monitor, and assess hazards that are
associated to geological processes.