Dr Andrew Tewkesbury
Airbus Defence and Space
1st Edition · Registration open closed (We are at capacity now)
2026 Summer School on AI Advances in Earth Observation
A four-day intensive school bringing together leading researchers and practitioners to explore the latest AI methods applied to Earth observation and remote sensing. Join us flexibly for one or more days or all four days.
Urban Science BuildingNewcastle University
4-Day Intensive
Full programme
Lectures + Labs
Theory & practice
About the school
A focused week of learning, building and connecting with GeoAI
The summer school combines lectures, hands-on labs and research talks to take participants from core principles to the cutting edge advances of AI for Earth observation — with plenty of time to discuss, build and meet collaborators.
- Lectures from leading researchers
- Industry sessions
- Hands-on labs & tutorials
- Cutting-edge research talks
- Networking
- Practical, transferable skills
Who it's for
Key information
Everything you need at a glance
Dates
21–24 September 2026
Monday to Thursday, four full days
Location
Newcastle University
Urban Science Building, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
Registration deadline
14 SEPTEMBER 2026
Registration fee
FREE
Includes materials, lunches & social dinner
Accommodation
Not available
You need to arrange your own accommodation
Contact
deepayan.bhowmik@ncl.ac.uk
We aim to reply within 2 working days
Programme
A four-day journey from foundations to the frontier of AI in Earth observation
Each day pairs morning lectures with afternoon hands-on labs. Topics and times are indicative and subject to change.
Day 1
Mon · 21 Sep
The New Era: Foundation Models in EO
09:00
Registration & welcome coffee
09:30
Opening keynote: TBCTalk
10:30
Morning lecture: From CNNs to Transformers in Remote Sensing. Why standard Computer Vision fails on satellite data. Talk
14:00
Hands on with Prithvi/Alpha Earth/Terramind. Lab
Day 2
Tue · 22 Sep
Beyond Optical – Multi-Modal Fusion & SAR
09:00
Registration & welcome coffee
09:30
Opening keynote: TBCTalk
10:30
Morning lecture: Seeing through the clouds. Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) deep learning basics. Talk
14:00
Hands on with data fusionLab
19:00
Social dinner
Day 3
Wed · 23 Sep
Generative AI for Earth Science
09:00
Registration & welcome coffee
09:30
Opening keynote: TBCTalk
10:30
Morning lecture: Dreaming the Earth. Introduction to Diffusion Models and GANs for EO.Talk
14:00
Hands on with The "Cloud Removal" challenge.Lab
Day 4
Thu · 24 Sep
AI at the Edge & Real-Time Intelligence
09:00
Registration & welcome coffee
09:30
Opening keynote: TBCTalk
10:30
Morning lecture: Orbit-to-Insight. Edge AI and deploying models directly on satellites. Talk
14:00
Hands on with optimization sprintLab
Speakers
Learn from researchers shaping the field
More being updated
A confirmed line-up of academic and industry speakers across the breadth of AI for Earth observation.
Dr Armando Marino
University of Stirling
Dr Deepayan Bhowmik
Newcastle University
Prof Doreen Boyd
University of Nottingham
Dr James Rainey
Newcastle University
Dr Luca Chiarabini
German Aerospace Center (DLR)
Dr Maria-Valasia Peppa
Newcastle University
Dr Tomasz Szydlo
Newcastle University
Dr Vahid Akbari
University of Stirling
Dr Varun Ojha
Newcastle University
Organisers
The team behind the school
Dr Deepayan Bhowmik
General Chair
Dr Tatiana Alvares-Sanches
Organising Member
Dr James Rainey
Organising Member
Venue
Urban Science Building, Newcastle University
A state-of-the-art building in the heart of Newcastle, a short walk from the city centre and well connected by rail and air.
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Urban Science Building, Newcastle upon Tyne NE4 5TGLectures and labs in the Urban Science Building.
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Travel25 min by Metro from Newcastle International Airport; direct intercity rail to Newcastle Central Station.
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AccessibilityAll venues are step-free with accessible facilities. Tell us your requirements on registration.