On the foundations of Earth foundation models

Abstract Foundation models have enormous potential in advancing Earth sciences. However, current approaches may not be optimal, as they focus only on a few basic features of a desirable Earth foundation model. Crafting the ideal Earth foundation model, we define eleven features which would allow such a foundation model to be beneficial for any geoscientific downstream application in an environmental- and human-centric manner. We further shed light on the way forward to achieve the ideal model and to evaluate Earth foundation models. What comes after foundation models? Energy efficient adaptation, adversarial defenses, and interpretability are among the emerging directions.