Sara Aparício is an Earth observation data scientist, having worked with the European Space Agency (ESA) and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT). Currently, as a PhD candidate at NOVA University, she is working with satellite data for the study of Arctic sea ice, using Artificial Intelligence (AI) approaches.
Her main fields of interest are AI, data fusion and data visualization applied to climate and societal challenges with special interest in the Arctic regions. For the past years Sara has been involved in multiple activities regarding AI, Arctic sciences and science communication. In the AI field, Sara has supported the ESA AI Strategy Group and during the same period, Sara was secretary to the world first AI Special Interest Group on Space - currently she is involved in development of AI courses and co-authored a book. Regarding the Arctic, Sara was appointed an Observer to the Remote Sensing Working Group of SIOS (Svalbard Integrated Observing System) and earlier on, she was appointed as President of APECS Portugal (Association of Polar Early Career Scientists), having served as vice-President and national representative. On science communication, Sara has given public speeches on satellite launch events, international conferences and has given interviews to radio and TV.
In the beginning of her career, she worked in two STEM-related startups, one of which she was the Co-Founder. She holds an integrated master of Environmental Engineering at NOVA School of Science and Technology. During her studies, Sara received a Merit Recognition awarded to the student concluding the degree with top results.
