Jean-Francois Minster, President of Ifremer, France's Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea, has played an important role in the development of the study of oceans by satellite. He has authored numerous scientific publications and works, including La Machine Ocean, and is a member of France's prestigious European Academy of Sciences. In the following presentation, Mr. Minster delivers an update on the European Partners and Programmes that form part of the global observation network monitoring the oceans with an aim to predicting long-range weather conditions, natural disasters, and climate change.