EO AFRICA R&D posts webinar on ASCAT soil moisture for rainfall and drought monitoring

The EO AFRICA R&D Facility, an ESA-funded initiative, has published the recording of its 23rd webinar on its YouTube channel. The session, on advances in using ASCAT soil moisture observations for rainfall and drought monitoring, was delivered by TU Wien (Vienna University of Technology) and first ran live on 24 September 2026.

It covers the ASCAT soil moisture services run by EUMETSAT's H-SAF, the hydrology and water management applications facility, and by the Copernicus Land Monitoring Service. It also presents recent studies that used these data to track extreme rainfall and drought across Africa. The presenter slides are available as a PDF on the facility's website, alongside the video.

Why it matters: Satellite soil moisture products from H-SAF and Copernicus are freely available inputs for drought and rainfall monitoring. The recording and slides give African hydrologists and EO analysts a practical reference for using them operationally.