Earth 2.0: The Race to Build the Earth’s Digital Twin

Imagine the Earth with a twin. Not a sci-fi planet in another galaxy, but a digital double built with the data from satellites, sensors, and supercomputers. This twin could simulate floods before they happen, test how cities handle heatwaves, and reveal the carbon cost of our infrastructure.

That is the promise of a digital twin of Earth. A living model that updates in real time, letting us test the future without breaking the present. And the race to build it is already underway.

Earth’s Digital Twin could be closer than we think

Brussels’ Bold Bid to Mirror the Planet

The European Commission launched Destination Earth, or DestinE in 2022. Running until 2030, the project aims to deliver a planetary-scale digital twin capable of simulating climate change and natural hazards in extraordinary detail.

Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice-President of the Commission, called it “a true game changer in our fight against climate change.” She explained how DestinE will will let us observe environmental challenges and help predicting future scenarios like we have never done before.”

Source: destination-earth.eu

Digital Twin Simulations will become common place

Britain Builds Its Own Twin

The National Digital Twin Programme in the UK, launched by HM Treasury in 2018 and now supported by Connected Places Catapult is also in the race. Rather than recreating the whole planet, it focuses on connecting digital replicas of Britain’s national infrastructure such as energy, water, and transport.

At its heart are the Gemini Principles, first published in 2018 by the Centre for Digital Built Britain at the University of Cambridge. These principles were designed to set the ethical and technical foundations for digital twins in the UK, “Creating an ecosystem of connected digital twins opens the opportunity to release even greater value, using data for the public good.”

Source: www.cdbb.cam.ac.uk

Global Twin Fever

Other nations are also moving fast. Singapore has built a city-wide digital twin to test flooding, traffic, and air quality. Germany is creating regional climate twins to protect farms and forests. Sweden has launched the Digital Twin Cities Centre to push Gothenburg toward climate neutrality.

Even industry is proving what is possible. Rolls-Royce uses digital twins of jet engines to predict failures before they happen, and healthcare innovators are experimenting with body twins to simulate treatments before they reach patients. These projects show the technology is real and already working… the challenge now is scaling it up to the size of a planet.

The Stakes

If done right, Earth’s digital twin could become one of the most powerful allies in the climate fight. It could give scientists unprecedented insight, help governments prepare for disasters, and allow bold ideas to be tested safely before rollout.

If done wrong, it risks becoming a closed tool controlled by narrow interests, hoarding data and leaving citizens in the dark.

The Future of Earth 2.0

The race to build Earth’s digital twin is gathering speed, with Europe, the UK, and countries worldwide experimenting at different scales. From climate models and infrastructure planning to jet engines and healthcare, the technology is already proving its worth. 

The question now is how far and how fast it can be scaled, because Earth 2.0 may be one of the most important tools we have to protect Earth 1.0 for generations to come.