While it is necessary to address technical and organisational gaps that reduce the availability, effectiveness, and quality of satellite characterisation data, such improvements need be exploited by a sufficient workforce capacity to develop and deliver products and services to the marketplace.

Many non-satellite reference measurements have the potential to be operated on a continuous basis, or can at least be made available to operate at any time, even if in practice they cannot take uninterrupted observations, e.g. because the measurement technique requires certain geophysical conditions. Providing continuous observations to the extent possible would maximise opportunities for the validation of satellite-based measurements, as well as higher level data products derived from them.