Dr. Steffen Dransfeld ESA/ESRIN Via Galileo Galilei, 00044 Frascati ITALY email: steffen.dransfeld (at) esa.int Phone: +39 06 941 801 http://www.esa.int/esaCP/index.html Steffen, from Jever in Germany, obtained an M.Eng in electrical and electronic engineering from the University of Surrey, UK. This included a one-year internship at Electricité de France in Lyons. He then went to the Laboratory of Satellite Oceanography at the University of Southampton to carry out research for his PhD on ocean colour algorithm development. Since November 2005, he has been managing the German project office in support of ESA's Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) mission at the Institute of Oceanography at Hamburg University. Steffen is now working in the Science Strategy, Coordination and Planning Office (EOP-SA), where he is contributing to research and validation activities for new algorithms for oil spill detection based on SAR and optical data in support of the INTAS science projects DEMOSSS and MOPED for the GMES Service Element MarCoast. He also supports the Eduspace programme by helping to prepare and organise ESA courses and other events for education in Earth Observation.