We have teamed up with Digital Earth Africa to explore how open-access Earth observation data can be integrated with local, in-situ datasets to enhance understanding of mountainous environments which are so vital for supplying freshwater to downstream communities, supporting rare and endemic species, and regulating local microclimates that influence agriculture and weather patterns.
As part of this collaboration, African Mountain Research Foundation and Digital Earth Africa developed a Jupyter Notebook that demonstrates a workflow to compare and validate temperature data from DE Africa with weather station data from AMRF. The notebook provides a method to assess the differences between satellite-derived and in-situ temperature data and helps users understand how both data sources can be used together effectively.
A key case study featured in the notebook is Mount Mulanje, which is known for its ecological significance and role as a major water catchment. Using 2024 data collected from our Mount Mulanje Automatic weather station, the notebook compared observed air temperatures with spatially modelled estimates derived from Earth observation sources. The results showed an average difference of five degrees Celsius in air temperature, underscoring the importance of localised measurements for improving the accuracy of spatial models in mountainous areas. At the same time, it highlighted the value of Earth observation data in extending coverage to areas where on-the-ground data is limited or absent.
A major challenge facing researchers is the lack of consistent, high-quality observational data across Africa’s mountainous regions. There are significant gaps — often referred to as “black holes” — particularly in highland areas. One of the most promising ways to tackle this issue is by integrating satellite Earth observation with field-based data.
The collaboration demonstrates how Digital Earth Africa’s datasets which are accessible, analysis-ready, and cover the entire African continent, can be used in combination with user-supplied data. The workflow shown in the notebook can run in any computing environment, enabling researchers and practitioners to replicate or adapt it with their own datasets. This lowers the barrier to entry for organisations that may not have access to sophisticated infrastructure or cloud services.
This collaboration sets an important precedent for open, reproducible research methods that help unlock insights in under-observed regions. By combining tools and data in an accessible way, African Mountain Research Foundation and Digital Earth Africa are helping to bring mountain ecosystems, often overlooked in broader policy and scientific efforts, into clearer focus.