In November 2026, the European Association of Remote Sensing Companies (EARSC) participated in the Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona, bringing together the European Earth Observation community and the wider smart cities ecosystem.
Showcasing EO in Action
At our dedicated booth, EARSC members demonstrated how EO solutions support key urban priorities, including water management, flood prevention, temperature and heat monitoring, transport planning, and construction. The strong interest from city representatives, planners, and solution providers confirmed that EO is no longer a niche technology, but an essential tool for cities and regions seeking data-driven, climate-resilient development.
All EO products and services designed for local and regional authorities are available in our Catalogue of Services, which you can download here.
Engaging the Urban Community Through Dedicated Sessions
In addition to the booth, EARSC hosted three focused sessions to foster dialogue between EO providers and public authorities.
🌍 Advancing Urban Climate Adaptation with User-Driven Earth Observation: The SDGs-EYES Way
This workshop highlighted how user-driven EO strengthens urban resilience when local needs shape service design from the outset. Beate Tempel (constellr) and Edurne Estevez (GeoVille Information Systems and Data Processing GmbH) emphasized the importance of co-creation with municipalities and embedding successful EO solutions into governance processes to ensure long-term impact.
🏙️ AGORA Session: Earth Observation for Urban Planning
City representatives Elena Martín Alonso (Comunidad de Madrid) and Nicolas Kulpinski (Métropole Aix-Marseille-Provence) shared how EO supports land-use monitoring, vegetation mapping, solar planning, and heat island analysis. EO providers Sébastien Delbour (CLS Group) and Samuel Fonseca (COTESA) highlighted the need for refined classifications, improved data integration, and AI-driven approaches to deliver accurate and cost-effective services tailored to city needs.
🌊 OCEANIDS Project Session
The OCEANIDS session brought together coastal user representatives and speakers from VALORADA, SEACLIM, and EDITO. The discussion focused on current challenges in coastal monitoring, existing solution gaps, and how the outcomes of OCEANIDS and VALORADA can continue to benefit communities as both projects approach completion.
EARSC’s participation at Smart City Expo reinforced the growing role of Earth Observation in urban planning and climate adaptation. By connecting technology providers with public authorities and international stakeholders, we continue to strengthen the position of the European EO downstream sector as a key partner for smarter, more resilient cities.
In 2026, we will once again join the event together with our members — if you are an EARSC member interested in being part of the EARSC presence next year, we invite you to get in touch and join us.
In the high-stakes world of Space, we’ve spent decades playing a frustrating game of “wait and see” when it comes to Earth Observation (EO). You wait for the satellite to pass over, you wait for the clouds to clear, and you wait for the data to be processed into something actually useful. By the time you get your answer, the flood has usually already come and gone.
Enter RSS-Hydro. Based in the heart of Luxembourg’s booming space ecosystem, this geospatial analytics company isn't just processing data or running models; they are reimagining the very "recipe" of satellite intelligence. By 2026, their dual-threat strategy—the “multi-Sensor” and the “Pin” approach—is effectively flipping the EO market on its head.
Multi-Sensor Data: Moving Beyond the Single Ingredient
For years, the EO industry was siloed. You were either a "Radar person" (SAR) or an "Optical person." SAR could see through clouds but looked like grainy static to the untrained eye; Optical was beautiful and intuitive but useless the moment a storm rolled in.
RSS-Hydro’s multi-sensor or “data cocktail” approach treats these sensors not as rivals, but as ingredients. By using high-resolution SAR from the Copernicus Sentinel-1 missions as well as the rich spectral detail of Sentinel-2 with static hydrological layers from Digital Elevation Models (DEMs), and even satellite microwave data, they create a composite view that is greater than the sum of its parts.
This isn't just a simple overlay. Being able to deploy on various computing architectures, whether cloud or HPC supercomputers, RSS-Hydro employs a mix between signal processing and machine learning to fill in the gaps. The result? A clear, all-weather map that doesn't care if it's raining.
The ‘Pin’ Approach: Precision Where it Hits the Ground
If the multi-sensor is the what, the Pin approach is the where.
The traditional EO market sold "pixels" – large swaths of land without meaningful insights. But a city manager doesn't need a map of a province; they need to know if the water is going to hit the electrical substation on 5th Street.
The Pin approach "pins" satellite-derived (flood) intelligence to specific, high-value assets. It bridges the "last mile" of EO data by:
Localizing risk: Instead of broad area maps, it provides location-based (pinned) alerts for specific infrastructure using customizable parameters.
Integrating In-situ Sensors & Auxiliary Data: It can pull in data from IoT water-level sensors, from forecast simulations or even from citizen science-based collections to validate the satellite’s view in real-time.
Enabling LLMs to instantly interpret impacts: It converts large satellite imagery into lightweight, semantic "knowledge pins" either directly on a spacecraft or on the ground, enabling LLMs to instantly interpret impacts on specific assets or at specific locations through simple text-based data that can be processed on even the most resource-constrained platform or edge devices.
"The EO market is shifting from selling images to selling impact. We don't just tell you it's flooding; we pin the risk to your front door." — Insight into the RSS-Hydro Philosophy.
Why the Market is Shifting
The commercial impact of these approaches will be profound. First responders, emergency managers, Insurance, transportation and supply logistics companies, all need to move away from static models toward the dynamic "Pin" for real-time alerting and planning.
By breaking the "single-image" habit, RSS-Hydro has proved that the future of space isn't just about what we put into orbit - it’s about how we interpret the signals we’re already getting.
SpaceSUITE is an Erasmus+ Blueprint project for the development of innovative resources for education and training to bridge the gap between the supply and demand of skills in the ever-growing downstream space sector. The project was kicked off in January 2024, and it will end in December 2027. It integrates 29 partners, including 3 affiliated entities, from Academia, vocational education and training (VET) providers, associations, and representatives of industry companies. The project is grounded in and promoted under the SPACE4GEO Largescale Skills
Partnership on Space Data, Services and Applications, funded under the European Commission’s Pact for Skills initiative. SpaceSUITE builds on the foundations of the earlier EO4GEO project, extending its scope to include satellite communication and positioning/navigation alongside Earth observation and geoinformation. Its overarching objective is to empower the European downstream workforce by supporting curriculum development, innovative training resources, and sectorwide collaboration for professionals, students, graduates, and employers alike.
SPACE4GEO, for its part, brings together stakeholders from academia, industry, research and public institutions to monitor, analyze and contribute to workforce development strategies for Europe’s space downstream and geoinformation sectors. As a Large-scale Skills Partnership under the Pact for Skills, SPACE4GEO promotes activities designed to upskill, reskill and attract new talent to these fields, facilitating exchange and cooperation across value chains and institutional levels.
Recent events and milestones shows that SpaceSUITE is transitioning from foundational activities toward visible implementation and engagement. On 10 December 2025, SpaceSUITE organized a dissemination event in Monte de Caparica, Portugal, entitled “Core space occupational profiles and the training offer: What’s new and what’s next?” Hosted at FCT-NOVA, this event presented emerging occupational profiles and discussed educational offerings linked to downstream space skills development. In November 2025, SpaceSUITE was featured at the European Education & Skills Summit in Brussels, the European Commission’s principal annual forum on education, training and skills, in a panel focused on strengthening cooperation between education systems and industry for upskilling and reskilling. During this session, representatives highlighted SpaceSUITE’s role in operationalizing aspects of the Pact for Skills by developing targeted training programs and supporting learners across skill development pathways. In May 2025, SpaceSUITE partners participated in the GEO Global Forum 2025 in Rome, where sector stakeholders debated pathways for aligning skills development with technological advancements and workforce expectations in Earth observation and related domains. In June 2025, SpaceSUITE was represented at the AGILE International Conference on Geographic Information Science in Dresden, where partners led workshops showcasing the GeoSpace Body of Knowledge and associated educational tools, including curriculum design and training-material development interfaces. A significant structural advancement for SpaceSUITE has been the strengthening of governance around the Body of Knowledge (BoK), a reference framework for competencies in Earth observation, geoinformation, satellite communication and positioning/navigation. In late 2025, this resource was rebranded and repositioned as the GeoSpace Body of Knowledge, complete with a dedicated platform and expanded scope, under a working group supported by SPACE4GEO coordination.
Sources:
- https://www.spacesuite-project.eu/ - SpaceSUITE Grant Agreement
SPACE4GEO
The Large -scale Skills Partnership (LSP) for Space Data, Services and Applications (SPACE4GEO), promoted under the European Commission’s (EC) initiative Pact for Skills, aims to empower workers with the skills needed for the development of future innovations and to achieve the aims of the EU's Space strategies.
In line with the principles governing the Pact for Skills and its Charter, the proposed LSP wishes to ensure continuous exchange and cooperation among stakeholders from the academic, private, and public sectors on skills development and requirements.
SPACE4GEO’s recent activities focus on consolidating the partnership’s strategic role in shaping skills agendas and strengthening multi-stakeholder alignment. In January 2026, SPACE4GEO organized a panel at the 18th European Space Conference, bringing together representatives from industry, academia, policymaking bodies and research institutions to address workforce development challenges and the skills requirements of Europe’s space downstream sector. In September 2025, the European Space Policy Institute (ESPI) joined the SPACE4GEO partnership, adding expertise in education policy and strategic analysis to the alliance. ESPI’s participation emphasizes the growing recognition that coordinated efforts are needed to respond to skills demands and to integrate space education priorities into broader European space strategies.
Structuring Strategic CollaborationTogether, SpaceSUITE and SPACE4GEO represent a coordinated European response to the downstream space sector’s skills challenges, translating political commitment, strategic vision and multi-stakeholder cooperation into concrete actions, events and resources. Through structured dissemination, participation in influential conferences, and the development of knowledge frameworks and training tools, the initiatives are contributing to a more resilient and agile space workforce, better aligned with evolving technological and market demands.
On 28th July of 2025 at night, a wildfire broke out near Mombeltrán (Ávila province, central Spain), rapidly spreading across the Sierra de Gredos and threatening nearby communities. OpenCosmos quickly activated its Hyper-500 product derived from hyperspectral Hammer satellite to capture imagery over the affected area. Within hours after the July 30th 15:13 UTC acquisition, the data was downloaded to the ground station, transferred, processed and analyzed, delineating the burn area and estimating the amount of hectares burned as of the image acquired during the event.
Early detection provides a crucial window of opportunity for rapid response, allowing firefighting teams to attack the fire while it is still small and manageable. This proactive approach significantly increases the chances of successful containment, preventing the fire from escalating into an uncontrollable megafire. It drastically reduces the overall cost of suppression, minimizes damage to ecosystems and property, and most importantly, saves lives by enabling timely evacuations and ensuring the safety of first responders.
The unique combination of the Hyper-500 constellation’s 32-band VNIR hyperspectral payload—delivering 5-meter resolution—and the OpenConstellation edge computing framework enables a paradigm shift in real-time intelligence. The satellites enable the deployment of algorithms directly to the spacecraft board, thus processing imagery on-board to generate low-latency insights. These 'lite' data products are then downlinked via Inter-Satellite Link (ISL) in a matter of minutes, effectively merging the company’s Earth Observation and telecommunications infrastructure into a single, high-speed backbone for rapid decision-making.
Active wildfire fronts can be precisely identified and monitored using optical multispectral and hyperspectral satellite imagery. While Short-Wave Infrared (SWIR) and Thermal Infrared (TIR) bands are the primary domains for detecting thermal anomalies, hyperspectral data in the Visible and Near-Infrared (VNIR) range provides a unique chemical fingerprint of the combustion process. Specifically, it allows for the detection of narrow atomic emission peaks from elements like potassium (~766–770 nm), sodium (~819 nm), and calcium (~850–866 nm). Moreover, because longer wavelengths in the NIR and SWIR ranges penetrate smoke more effectively than visible light, these sensors can map the active flame front even when it is obscured by dense plumes.
The acquired imagery is limited to the VNIR (Visible and Near-Infrared) spectrum. While True Color (RGB) composites failed to penetrate the dense smoke plumes generated by the active wildfire, the upper Red-Edge and NIR bands demonstrate a superior capacity for smoke penetration. In cases where smoke is not excessively thick, these longer wavelengths are less affected by Mie scattering, allowing for a clearer observation of the active fire front and underlying terrain.
Figure 1: True Color Image in the affected area showing the smoke and False Color composite R, NIR, Blue
Building upon these spectral signatures, an empirical detection method was developed by leveraging the Hyper-500’s 32-band VNIR range through advanced band algebra. By specifically isolating the channels corresponding to the potassium (766–770 nm) and calcium (~850 nm) emission peaks, the algorithm can automatically distinguish active hotspots from solar reflectance. This logic transforms hyperspectral data into a high-value 'lite' insight—a precise fire front delineation—which is then prioritized for immediate downlink via Inter-Satellite Link. This workflow ensures that critical fire-mapping intelligence reaches ground segments within minutes of acquisition, bypassing the latency of traditional raw data processing.
Figure 2: Normalized Differential NIR - Red Edge, and two close ups of several delineated wildfire fronts
Some hyperspectral upper NIR and Red Edge bands have a peak of reflection that can differentiate the active fire front in comparison to other bands heavily influenced by chlorophyll scattering (Red Edge 2 and Red Edge 1) that doesn’t have the contribution of the peak of Potassium, Sodium or Calcium in the wildfire.
These bands can be combined and operated through different analytics to delineate the active fronts and the burned area.
Band
Name
Central wavelength
Spectral Range
FWHM (Full Width at Half Maximum)
Overlapping Chemical fingerprint
HS20
RedEdge 2
739nm
712,13 - 765,87 nm
26.87nm
-
HS21
RedEdge 2
755nm
727,57 - 782,43 nm
27.43nm
Potassium (~766–770 nm)
HS22
RedEdge 3
770nm
742,05 - 797,95 nm
27.95nm
HS23
RedEdge 3
785nm
756,52 - 813,48
28.48nm
HS24
Near Infra-Red
799nm
770,03 - 827,97
28.97nm
Potassium (~766–770 nm) Sodium (~819 nm)
HS25 HS26
Near Infra-Red Near Infra-Red
814nm 830nm
787,51 - 843,49 nm 799,95 - 860,05
29.49nm 30.05nm
Sodium (~819 nm)
HS27
Near Infra-Red
844nm
813,46 - 874,54 nm
30.54nm
Sodium (~819 nm) Calcium (~850–866 nm)
HS28
Near Infra-Red
860nm
828,9 - 891,10 nm
31.10nm
Calcium (~850–866 nm)
HS29 HS30
Near Infra-Red Near Infra-Red
874nm 884nm
842,41 - 905,59 nm 852,06 - 915,94 nm
31.59nm 31.94nm
The normalized differential index between the NIR band 30 and Red Edge band 20 in addition to a proxy derived NDVI (Band HS25 NIR and Band HS15 Red) to discard false positives, generates an SNR high enough to discriminate these NIR peak detections from healthy vegetation.
Figure 3: Normalized Differential NIR - Red Edge, False Color HS30, HS20, HS01 and detection over VHR pre-fire condition
Figure 4: a) Normalized Differential NIR (HS30) - Red Edge (HS20), False Color HS30, HS20, HS01 and detection over VHR pre-fire condition.
A further investigation will be performed trying to correlate the peaks of reflectivity with the chemistry of combustion of Sodium, Calcium and Potassium and thus try to remove potential false positives and consolidate the approach. Moreover the technique will be refined lowering the threshold of detection and limiting the search only in close neighbour overlapping of 100-m buffer from the initial pixel detections.
The OpenCosmos Hyper-500 product offers high-resolution hyperspectral imagery, capturing 32 bands at under 5m resolution. The Technical Specifications of this constellation are detailed below:
● 2 satellites
● Ground Sampling Distance (GSD): 4.75m @ Nadir
● Swath Width: 19 km
● Bit Depth: 8, or 12 bits
● Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO) at 14:00 hours Local Time Descending Node (LTDN).
● Swath Resolution: 4096 pixels wide
● Edge Computing with AI-onboard
● IoT and Inter-Satellite-Link
Spectral Bands
The hyperspectral payload captures 32 channels in the visible and near infrared spectral range. The imager captures in linescan mode using a wedge filter. The 32 spectral bands central wavelengths can be chosen by the band start row, with the filter width being influenced by the number of dTDI stages in use. For simplicity, below the central wavelengths are listed at 1 dTDI stage with the nominal band start rows selected.
Landfills sit squarely in the methane reduction conversation, as waste disposal emits methane, and multiple assessments place the waste sector at roughly a tenth of anthropogenic methane emissions globally.
But turning “methane awareness” into “methane action” is not straightforward in the waste sector.
Unlike a single isolated component leak, landfill methane can be diffuse and influenced by day-to-day site activity as well as weather and ground conditions. This complexity makes monitoring strategy just as important as monitoring technology, especially when the objective is not only detection but also verification that remediation is effective and durable.
For cities working to reduce emissions, what matters is understanding whether emissions persist, where interventions will make the greatest difference, and whether repairs actually hold over time. That shift is transforming methane monitoring from a measurement exercise into an operational decision tool.
A recent monitoring campaign at the Las Dehesas landfill outside Madrid demonstrates what this shift looks like in practice. Supported by the European Space Agency (ESA) in partnership with GHGSat—a global leader in emissions monitoring that uses high-resolution satellites and aircraft to detect and quantify greenhouse gas emissions—the initiative brings together researchers from the University of Leicester, Madrid City Council, and landfill operator Urbaser. The Netherlands Institute for Space Research (SRON) contributes scientific expertise, while the Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB) serves as ESA project coordinator, supporting efforts to understand how sustained monitoring can enable real-world mitigation.
Since spring 2025, researchers have been collecting concurrent methane measurements using ground and airborne surveys and satellites, with a clear operational aim: detect methane emission sources and then assess whether repairs have worked.
The defining feature of the campaign is its multi-layer monitoring strategy. Different observing systems answer different operational questions.
ESA’s Sentinel-5P provides a broad regional context, offering wide-area coverage. GHGSat’s satellite-based emissions monitoring solution, DATA.SAT, with its proprietary sensors, supports facility-level plume detection. Aircraft surveys complemented this view with sub-meter-scale mapping capable of detecting smaller emission sources, adding granular diagnostic clarity to guide field response.
This layered workflow reflects a “tip-and-cue” approach in which broad detection is followed by targeted, high-resolution follow-up, an approach increasingly used to get a comprehensive view of the emissions footprint.
Within this framework, GHGSat’s high-resolution observations captured methane plumes over the landfill at approximately 25m resolution, identifying localized leaks on the order of ~100 kilograms per hour.
“By combining the frequency of high-resolution satellite measurements with the targeted view of high-resolution airborne measurements, we’re able to gain an unprecedented understanding of how landfill methane behaves. This level of insight empowers operators to target solutions more effectively and ultimately drive meaningful emissions reduction,” said Dan Wicks, UK Managing Director, GHGSat.
If the goal is real mitigation, monitoring must connect three steps: detection, remediation, and verification that mitigation is robust over time. This operational loop was also central to the Madrid campaign.
Operationally, the story did not stop at “we saw a plume.”
The surveys were repeated in September and October 2025 to assess the impact of repair work that included maintenance of gas collection wells and pipelines and adjustments to how the landfill surface is managed—precisely the kind of interventions that benefit from measurement-informed prioritization and remeasurement.
The project emphasizes that openness and strong collaboration between municipal leadership, the landfill operator, and research partners enabled success because timing site activity against airborne and satellite observations gave researchers crucial context, while rapid data delivery helped identify emission sources and persistence to guide remediation.
Remote sensing does not replace ground monitoring. It strengthens operations.
The collaborative approach is particularly important because the waste sector has long faced a measurement challenge. Multiple satellite-based studies have found that facility-scale methane signals can diverge from reported or modelled emission estimates, creating uncertainty that complicates mitigation planning.
The campaign also reflects a broader evolution in Europe’s methane monitoring ecosystem. Through ongoing collaboration with ESA programmes and research initiatives, GHGSat has supported access to high-resolution emissions data that complements public missions and helps bridge the gap between atmospheric observation and operational decision-making.
As European institutions, municipalities, and operators work to refine monitoring approaches, similar monitoring frameworks will support future collaborative initiatives, including wastewater treatment plants and sludge processing facilities, where verifying mitigation outcomes remains a challenge.
The Madrid campaign offers a model that many cities and waste managers can replicate: layered observing, rapid analysis, and collaboration that translate observations into practical action.
Those interested in learning more about the Madrid campaign or exploring opportunities for collaboration can connect with Carles Debart at GHGSat (cdebart@ghgsat.com) .
About GHGSat
GHGSat is a global leader in emissions monitoring with pioneering capabilities that drive industrial efficiency with positive impact. Harnessing the power of satellites and aircraft, GHGSat traces emissions directly to their source at an unmatched speed, delivering the data and insights required to take action. A trusted partner for organizations around the world, GHGSat empowers decision-makers to tackle emissions, accelerating progress towards a resilient energy future.
As part of the ESA ScaleUp Programme, ESA Phi-Lab Spain accelerates the commercialization of space technologies for climate resilience. Supported by the Spanish Space Agency (AEE) and the Government of Catalonia, and coordinated by the Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC), the programme manages a robust ecosystem of research organizations and industry leaders focused on enhancing climate resilience through space technologies.
As the first quarter of 2026 approaches, four key projects within the ESA Phi-Lab Spain portfolio are demonstrating the maturity of downstream applications in addressing climate resilience challenges.
Image “Earth from Space The Ebro Delta” contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2024), processed by ESA, licensed by ESA Standard Licence.
Addressing operational "Blind Spots" in coastal resilience Coastal management has traditionally struggled to balance large-scale coverage with the need for high-level detail.While satellite imagery provides global coverage at low resolution, traditional field surveys are costly and often cannot access high-risk, shallow, or rocky zones. The WAVESS project, led by Spascat Technologies in partnership with GPA Seabots and CTTC, addresses this through a hybrid calibration model. By deploying Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) as mobile "ground truth" stations, the project correlates satellite data with high-accuracy bathymetric data in near real-time. This modular approach provides a scalable framework for monitoring sediment concentration and sea-level impacts, essential for long-term coastal protection.
Quantifying risk in agriculture: the role of explainable AI For the food, pharmaceutical, and textile industries, climate resilience is inseparable from supply chain stability. RISKCHAIN, led by EarthPulse in collaboration with Eurecat and the Fundación Empresa y Clima, operates as a simulation environment that integrates EO and socioeconomic variables to model "what-if" scenarios regarding extreme weather and regulatory shifts. The technical differentiator is the application of Explainable AI. Instead of providing an opaque risk score, the platform identifies specific drivers such as soil moisture anomalies or drought patterns allowing stakeholders to anticipate disruptions in agricultural production with transparency and evidence-based confidence.
RESCAT: A unified framework for ecosystem survival In vulnerable territories like the Ebro Delta, environmental data is often fragmented across multiple institutions. RESCAT, a joint initiative by isardSAT, Lobelia Earth, and Eurecat, with the involvement of the Climate Resilience Centre, unifies satellite observations and in-situ measurements into a single operational framework. For instance, by crossing coastal erosion metrics with river flow and sea-level data, the platform provides a chronological audit of environmental health. This allows local authorities and scientists to measure the tangible efficacy of interventions, such as beach nourishment, moving coastal protection from reactive measures toward data-driven resilience.
Representatives from the WAVESS, RISKCHAIN, RESCAT, and SKOP projects presenting their climate resilience initiatives during a recent event in Barcelona.
The economics of precision in the energy transition In the energy sector, the limitation of traditional climate models lies in their inability to account for local atmospheric shifts at the scale of specific renewable assets. For a wind farm valued at €500M, a mere 1% deviation in wind speed forecasting can lead to substantial financial losses. SKOP, led by Geoskop in collaboration with CIMNE, addresses this by fusing data from missions such as Aeolus and Meteosat with physical climate models and AI. While traditional historical methods often carry a 4% uncertainty margin, SKOP’s algorithms have demonstrated a reduction to 1.5%, ensuring that large renewable energy investments are reliable and financially secure.
For further information about these projects and the ESA Phi-Lab Spain programme, please visit our website. There, you can find in-depth interviews and follow the latest updates and progress of each initiative
The space economy is entering a decisive phase. With thousands of new satellites expected to be deployed over the coming decade, Earth observation (EO) is evolving from a data-collection activity into a real-time intelligence infrastructure. The shift is not merely quantitative. It is structural. From orbital logistics to in-orbit servicing, from low-latency analytics to autonomous systems, the sector is redefining how information is produced and delivered.
At the forefront of this transformation stands Planetek, whose contribution to the evolution of Earth observation reflects both technological vision and strategic positioning. The company has championed a paradigm often described as “Cloud Computing in Space”: moving processing capabilities from the ground segment directly into orbit. Rather than downloading vast volumes of raw imagery for later analysis, satellites are becoming intelligent nodes capable of processing data on board and delivering actionable insights within seconds.
Innovation and Competitiveness: the role of investments in Europe.
Speaking at the 18th European Space Conference in Brussels in January 2026, Planetek’s Chief Executive Officer Giovanni Sylos Labini underlined the importance of scale, collaboration and investment in this rapidly expanding landscape. “In this scenario,” he noted, “it is essential to operate in a favourable environment supported by anchor tenancy from public investment, the capacity for aggregation and collaboration among companies, the ability to attract capital, and the development of an ecosystem that strengthens innovation.”
The message resonated during the panel on “capital and competitiveness”, where industry leaders discussed Europe’s need to strengthen investment pathways and enable space companies to grow from early innovation to full commercial scale. Access to capital, talent attraction, and demonstrable market traction were identified as crucial elements if Europe is to compete globally.
Planetek & D-Orbit: a strategic integration for a broader spectrum of space and EO-based solutions!
It is precisely along these lines that the strategic integration between Planetek and D-Orbit has taken shape. In 2025, the two companies announced a business combination designed to expand their capabilities across advanced space technologies. The announcement, made at the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy in Rome, signaled more than a corporate transaction. It marked the convergence of complementary strengths: Planetek’s expertise in Earth observation analytics and geospatial intelligence, and D-Orbit’s leadership in orbital transportation, last-mile satellite delivery and space logistics.
Together, the group now spans a broad spectrum of services: orbital transportation, space logistics, space situational awareness, defence ISR, and advanced Earth observation solutions. The integration reflects a wider trend within the sector — vertical consolidation aimed at delivering end-to-end capabilities, from access to orbit through to data exploitation.
AI-eXpress: From Data to Decisions in Seconds.
The first tangible expression of this ambition is already in space. AI-eXpress, the group’s inaugural joint programme, is now in orbit. Conceived as the first generation of an advanced in-orbit artificial intelligence system, the AI-eXpress constellation redefines how organisations access, use and benefit from satellite data.
Unlike traditional EO missions, which depend on ground-based processing chains, AI-eXpress performs AI-driven analytics directly on board the satellite. The implications are profound. Near-zero latency, autonomous tasking, reduced bandwidth requirements and immediate delivery of actionable information become operational realities. In effect, satellites are transformed into real-time data hubs — orbiting platforms capable not only of observing the Earth but of interpreting what they see.
The system also introduces an innovative “Space App Store” concept, enabling stakeholders to test, validate and deploy their own AI models in orbit. This dramatically shortens the path from idea to operational service. Users can experiment with applications, optimise algorithms, and receive immediate feedback from space, without the delays traditionally associated with satellite missions.
The first cohort of partners already on-board AI-eXpress demonstrates the breadth of its potential applications. Eni is developing advanced pipelines for low-latency, AI-aided onboard processing to deliver actionable information directly to users. S&T, VAKE and NOSA are validating intelligent monitoring technologies through in-orbit demonstration services. Ubotica is experimenting with neural network optimisation and edge-AI portability, while IBM is deploying its TerraMind.tiny foundation model to enable software-defined satellite services capable of delivering real-time Earth insights at the edge. Microchip, meanwhile, is validating radiation-tolerant, AI-capable onboard computing solutions as part of the broader satellite series.
Led by Planetek Italia in collaboration with D-Orbit and AIKO, and co-funded by the European Space Agency’s InCubed programme under ESA Φ-lab, AI-eXpress exemplifies a new operational philosophy: satellites not as passive sensors, but as intelligent, flexible and upgradeable platforms. It signals a shift from data abundance to decision immediacy.
Investors supporting the growth.
This technological momentum is matched by financial consolidation. The recent closing of a €110 million club deal led by Azimut to invest in D-Orbit underscores investor confidence in the group’s trajectory. The transaction strengthens the capital base needed to scale operations, accelerate innovation, and reinforce Europe’s competitive position in the global space arena.
Planetek & D-Orbit Group is thus entering a new chapter of continuous growth, reaching wider skies both technologically and financially. By combining Earth observation excellence with space logistics leadership, and by embedding artificial intelligence directly in orbit, the group is positioning itself as a protagonist in the next generation of space services.
In an era where decisions increasingly depend on timely, reliable geospatial intelligence, the evolution of Earth observation is no longer about capturing images. It is about transforming data into knowledge — instantly. Through strategic integration, ambitious programmes such as AI-eXpress, and strengthened investment backing, Planetek and D-Orbit are demonstrating that Europe can not only participate in this transformation, but help lead it.
Turning DestinE into everyday insight: CALIFE makes Quality of Life visible at address level
Murmuration is pleased to announce the availability of CALIFE (Certification of LIfestyle and Environment) on the Destination Earth (DestinE) Platform. DestinE is the European Union-funded flagship initiative designed to build a high-precision digital replica of the Earth system. Implemented by the European Space Agency (ESA), European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), and European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT), DestinE aims to support climate adaptation and resilience across Europe.
CALIFE is a free, online tool that allows any citizen (e.g., residents, homeowners, tenants, or simply the curious) to generate a personalised quality-of-life certificate for a specific address, based on robust environmental and climate intelligence.
By translating complex environmental data into clear indicators and practical guidance, CALIFE bridges the gap between Earth Observation science and everyday decision-making, demonstrating how DestinE’s advanced infrastructure and digital twins can be transformed into concrete, citizen-facing services.
What Is CALIFE?
CALIFE provides a comprehensive, easy-to-read, address-level assessment describing the quality of the local living environment. The output is a visual report complemented by maps and actionable recommendations. It combines Earth Observation data, in-situ measurements, and socio-economic indicators, processed within the DestinE ecosystem, to provide actionable insights across six key dimensions of quality of life:
Environmental Health: Assessment of air quality, exposure to pollution peaks, and proximity to healthcare infrastructure.
Accessibility & Mobility: Evaluation of long-distance connectivity (rail, airports, motorways) alongside sustainable local mobility options such as public transport and cycling networks.
Climate & Weather Comfort: Analysis of temperature patterns, sunlight exposure, and urban heat island effects, enriched with high-resolution future projections powered by the DestinE Climate Change Adaptation Digital Twin.
Water & Vegetation Resources: Indicators on water stress, vegetation cover, and ecosystem health.
Green Spaces & Biodiversity: Measurement of access to nature and landscape biodiversity, including compliance with the widely recognised “3-30-300” rule for residents’ well-being: see at least 3 trees from home, live in a neighbourhood with 30% tree canopy, and be within 300 meters of a green space.
Climate Hazards: Insights into 10-year historical trends and near-future projections related to temperature increase, drought periods, and precipitation patterns.
Each theme is rated from A to E, ensuring immediate readability without requiring technical expertise, while preserving scientific robustness.
Why DestinE-enabled tools like CALIFE matter
Destination Earth is designed to support informed decision-making in the face of climate change. CALIFE illustrates how this ambition can extend beyond institutional users to directly benefit citizens and territories.
As environmental quality becomes a key determinant of health, well-being, and territorial attractiveness, CALIFE addresses a growing societal need for transparency and accessibility. The tool offers:
A citizen-first approach, free and open to all
Democratised access to DestinE-powered environmental intelligence
An intuitive, non-technical interface translating complex data into understandable results, with clear visual indicators and ratings
Practical “tips” to improve daily living conditions, such as adapting outdoor activities to air quality conditions or enhancing vegetation around home
A shared knowledge base that can also support local authorities, urban planners, and real-estate stakeholders in assessing environmental quality and territorial attractiveness.
By linking DestinE tools to local, address-level insights, empowering individuals with reliable environmental information, CALIFE contributes to greater awareness and informed engagement with climate and environmental challenges, at both personal and territorial levels.
A concrete use case of Destination Earth
Developed within the DestinE Platform, CALIFE is a tangible example of how Europe’s investment in Earth system modelling can generate operational services with societal impact, offering tangible benefits for citizens, and reinforcing the role of Earth observation in daily life. The tool showcases the value of combining:
Copernicus Earth observation data
In-situ and socio-economic datasets
Advanced data fusion, modelling, and machine learning techniques
DestinE’s Climate Adaptation Digital Twin capabilities.
Through this approach, Murmuration helps bridge the gap between scientific excellence and practical usability.
How to Access CALIFE
The CALIFE tool is now live and freely accessible (Tutorial):
Download a comprehensive PDF report with scores, maps, analyses, and recommendations
Voices from Murmuration
“We believe that every citizen deserves to clearly understand the quality of their environment and to be empowered to improve it. Destination Earth opens unprecedented possibilities to understand how climate and environmental changes affect our daily lives. With CALIFE, we aim to make this intelligence accessible to every citizen and to support more informed, sustainable choices. CALIFE is our contribution to environmental transparency.”
Tarek Habib, President and Co-Founder, Murmuration
Murmuration warmly thanks the European Space Agency (ESA) and the European Union for their support in in delivering this DestinE-enabled service.
About Murmuration
Environmental responsibility lies at the core of Murmuration’s DNA. The company develops methodologies that combine Earth Observation data (including Copernicus satellites), in-situ measurements, and socio-economic statistics to assess ecosystem conditions anywhere in the world.
Murmuration’s expertise supports a wide range of use cases, including:
Evidence-based support for the European Green Deal and environmental policies
Decision-support dashboards for public authorities, integrating historical analyses and climate impact forecasts
Scientific evidence for climate change mitigation and adaptation actions.
These capabilities rely on advanced technologies such as remote sensing, large-scale data processing, data fusion, and machine learning, enabling the extraction of actionable insights from complex environmental data.
Latitudo 40 is developing a proprietary satellite-derived Physiological Equivalent Temperature (PET) layer, representing a major innovation in Earth Observation for urban climate analytics.
The product enables spatially continuous assessment of human thermal stress, advancing climate intelligence beyond conventional temperature mapping.
The Observational Gap: Translating Meteorology into Human Heat Load
Air temperature alone cannot accurately represent human thermal stress, as physiological heat balance depends on radiative fluxes, wind speed, and atmospheric moisture.
Physiological Equivalent Temperature (PET) is a biometeorological index expressing the thermal conditions experienced by the human body as an equivalent air temperature in a standardized indoor environment. Derived from the human energy balance equation, PET integrates air temperature, mean radiant temperature, humidity, and wind speed.
However, its spatial application remains constrained by sparse in-situ measurements and limited microclimatic resolution.
Latitudo 40’s High‑Resolution PET Layer: Bridging EO Data and Human Thermal Physiology
Latitudo 40’s PET layer leverages AI models trained on multispectral satellite data to retrieve microclimatic variables and compute spatially resolved PET.
This enables the detection of radiative heat accumulation, urban canyon effects, and micro-scale thermal gradients not captured by ground-based instruments.
PET Use Cases: Climate Resilience, Health, Mobility, and Risk Analytics
Urban planning and climate adaptation: identification of thermal risk hotspots
Public health: assessment of heat exposure and vulnerability
Urban mobility: thermally optimized pedestrian and micromobility routing
ESG and climate risk reporting: urban resilience indicators
Real estate and infrastructure: microclimate-aware asset evaluation
Insurance and risk underwriting: supporting risk assessment and pricing models by quantifying localized heat exposure and climate-related hazard zones
Grenoble Heatwave Case Study: PET Reveals Concealed Extreme Stress
An analysis conducted in Grenoble during the August 23, 2023 heatwave identified urban canyon zones where PET values reached up to 20°C above recorded air temperature.
The results revealed localized heat stress conditions undetectable by meteorological stations, demonstrating the value of satellite-derived PET mapping.
Embedding PET in Urban Routing: Next‑Gen Human‑Centric Mobility Tools
Latitudo 40 is integrating the PET layer into the Green Urban Navigator, an experimental mobility platform using Earth Observation and AI to optimize pedestrian routing.
By incorporating thermal comfort into routing logic, the system enables climate-aware mobility decisions and supports human-centric urban adaptation strategies.
Ongoing Experimentation and Future Release
The PET layer is currently in an experimental phase. Latitudo 40 plans to progressively release the fully operational PET layer and the Green Urban Navigator mobile application throughout 2026, sharing results and insights as both products evolve. These initiatives represent key steps toward scalable, human-centered, and climate-aware urban planning solutions.
Hydramo has recently introduced a novel concept redefining how Earth Observation data are processed, transferred and experienced by end users.
By combining long-term experience in the telecommunications industry with AI-driven, Edge-based Earth Observation approaches, Hydramo has introduced the Satellites-to-People paradigm. Instead of keeping satellite intelligence within cloud-heavy workflows, EO2GO delivers actionable EO insights directly to smartphones and vehicles.
At the core of this innovation lies patented AI-to-AI over-air technology together with on-device Edge AI processing. This architecture enables EO intelligence to be transmitted efficiently and interpreted locally on the user’s device. As a result, Earth Observation data are no longer dependent on continuous high-bandwidth connectivity. They can reach users even in remote areas and are compatible with terrestrial networks as well as emerging D2D (Direct-to-Device) technologies, enabling satellites to communicate directly with smartphones.
The platform operates using a combination of public and commercial satellite constellations, representing approximately 68 EO satellites in orbit. This blended approach ensures global coverage and multi-source resilience while maintaining a mobile-first delivery model.
EO2GO Mobile EO Twins consist of two complementary applications.
EO2GO Environmental App enables water authorities, farmers, fisheries and citizens to access satellite-based environmental intelligence without requiring any technical background. Farmers can monitor crop conditions, drought patterns and field variability directly from their smartphones, supporting more resilient and data-informed decisions. Fisheries and coastal operators can observe surface water extent, environmental changes and potential pollution indicators that may affect aquatic ecosystems. Surface water monitoring, vegetation condition awareness and climate-related insights become accessible through Edge AI processing within a mobile interface specifically designed for field use.
EO2GO Civil Protection App extends the concept into crisis response and multi-hazard awareness. It integrates EO-driven situational intelligence with navigation logic, supporting informed mobility decisions when time is critical. Designed for extreme scenarios, the system can transform satellite awareness about flood, snow, fires or air pollution into ultra-lightweight data suitable for operation during severe connectivity disruptions. Both emergency responders and civilians can use EO Navigation concepts to identify optimised routing or visualise potential escape paths. In total blackout conditions, EO information can even be represented in simplified text-based formats, including Morse-compatible transmission modes, ensuring continuity of awareness when conventional digital systems fail.
EO2GO Mobile EO Twins introduce a new era in Earth Observation. Authorities, businesses and civilians can access satellite intelligence directly, without specialised software or expertise. Climate resilience, food security and crisis situational awareness are no longer restricted to desktops but become globally accessible through a mobile device. With this novel concept, Earth Observation moves from space to people, and from infrastructure to individuals.
Access EO2GO Mobile EO Twins applications at www.eo2go.app.
