First Two Years of (Multi-Sensor) Airborne Campaigns with the ARES Observatory

Abstract

Since 2024, the ARES (Airborne Research of the Earth System) Observatory at the University of Zurich, Switzerland, has operated the Airborne Visible and Infrared Imaging Spectrometer-4 (AVIRIS-4) instrument, complemented since 2025 by a Riegl VQ-1560 II-S airborne laser scanner with a built-in Phase One iXU-RS 1000 photogrammetric camera. The first two years of ARES were primarily focused on establishing data processing chains, while also encompassing 61 successful airborne missions and the acquisition of 535 datasets. In this article, we highlight key aspects from the first two years of ARES operations. We introduce the three instruments of the ARES multi-sensor platform and the respective processing chains. We provide an overview of the airborne activities in the first two years, show examples of available ARES data, and look ahead to further developments foreseen for the following years.