Katherine Webber-Ing
Digital & Green Transformation Consultant
Email to Katherine Webber-Ing: katherine.webber-ing@leto.space
Who we help: cities and regions
Satellite data for cities and regions
Satellite data shows where a city overheats, where heavy rain collects, where green space shrinks and how land use changes. LETO SPACE helps cities, regions and municipalities choose the services that fit their climate and planning goals, write requirements that providers can answer, and procure and introduce those services into daily work.
- Terrain, river and parcels
- Surface temperature
- Areas at risk along the river
- Parks and trees
01Use cases
What satellite data can do for cities and regions
Satellite data already supports administrations in the eight tasks below. Each one links to a use case that explains how it works, which data it needs and where its limits are.
- UC-03
City emissions monitoring with satellite data
What satellite data contributes to monitoring a city's greenhouse-gas emissions and climate indicators, and where its limits are.
- UC-01
Mapping urban heat islands with satellite data
How thermal satellite data shows where a city overheats, which data and satellites it uses, what a heat map delivers and where its limits are.
- UC-02
Flood risk mapping and early warning with satellite data
How satellites support flood risk mapping, flood forecasts and the mapping of flooded areas, which Copernicus services a city can use and where the limits are.
- UC-04
Urban green space monitoring with satellite data
How a city can monitor green spaces and the condition of its vegetation from satellite data, which Copernicus layers exist and where the limits are.
- UC-05
Land use change detection with satellite data
How satellite data tracks land take, sealing and urban expansion, which Copernicus layers a region can use, and where their limits are.
- UC-06
Monitoring air quality with satellite data
What satellites and the Copernicus atmosphere service CAMS show a city about nitrogen dioxide, ozone and particulates, and why ground stations stay essential.
- UC-07
Disaster management with satellite data and communication
How satellite images map floods and damage within hours or days, how authorities request Copernicus rapid mapping, and how satcom helps when networks fail.
- UC-08
Rooftop solar potential from satellite and aerial data
How satellite radiation data, roof models from laser scanning and AI on satellite imagery show which roofs suit solar panels, and what they cannot show.
02Land take
Land take, made visible
Comparing images of the same area over time shows where fields and open land have become streets, roofs and car parks.
- Field or open land
- Sealed or built
- New since earlier
03How we work
We help you choose and procure what works for your climate and planning goals
We lead with process and transparency, and we write in the language of administrations and tenders.
- Station 1
Strategy and use cases
We start from your climate and planning goals, work out where satellite data helps and where it does not, and rank the use cases that fit.
- Station 2
Requirements and procurement
We turn a planning need into requirements that providers can answer, run the procurement and compare the offers you receive.
- Station 3
Implementation
We design pilots with agreed KPIs and steer providers until the solution runs in daily work.
For cities and regions, your contact is Katherine Webber-Ing.
Preparing a tender for a satellite-based service?Talk to us before you write the specification.
04Featured project
ClimateLENS: emissions and climate indicators for cities
FFG flagship project
ClimateLENS (KlimaBLICK)
ClimateLENS is a flagship project of the Austrian Space Application Programme (ASAP), co-funded by the FFG. Seven partners, led by GeoVille, build a prototype of a monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) system for greenhouse-gas emissions and climate indicators Source: GeoVille, November 2025GeoVilleClimateLENS Kick off MeetingNovember 2025Open source (opens geoville.com).
For selected pioneer cities, the project works on emission calculation and source allocation at city scale, the carbon stored in urban trees, and climate indicators such as land surface temperature, heat islands, vegetated rooftops and the cooling effect of green and blue infrastructure Source: GeoVille, November 2025GeoVilleClimateLENS Kick off MeetingNovember 2025Open source (opens geoville.com).
LETO SPACE is a consortium partner, responsible for stakeholder management and requirements engineering, especially with the cities. We work out what the cities need from the system and turn it into requirements.
- Lead partner
- GeoVille
- Duration
- October 2025 to March 2028
- Role
- Stakeholder management, requirements engineering
- Practice area
- Requirements and procurement
What satellite data can contribute to a city's emissions monitoring
05Our platform
Spacegraph, the platform we built for cities
We develop Spacegraph, a discovery platform for space-enabled solutions. It helps cities find out which solutions and providers exist for their problem. After a free sign-up you can describe your problem to the Spacegraph AI Compass in your own words.
Our Spacegraph AI Compass prototype won the "Accelerate Urban Green Transition" challenge of the ESA Acceleration Days 2025, among seven teams Source: Eurisy, 23 September 2025EurisyAccelerating urban green transition, guided by users, driven by innovation23 September 2025Open source (opens eurisy.eu). After the challenge, ESA invited LETO SPACE to apply for a cooperative agreement Source: ESA Commercialisation Gateway, 17 September 2025ESA Commercialisation GatewayESA Acceleration Days: Accelerate Urban Green Transition17 September 2025Open source (opens commercialisation.esa.int). ESA now supports Spacegraph through this cooperative agreement, in coordination with the European Commission's DG CLIMA and the Covenant of Mayors Source: EU Covenant of Mayors, eu-mayors.ec.europa.eu, 23 April 2026eu-mayors.ec.europa.euFrom Space to City: How Space-Enabled Solutions Support Urban Green Transition, Session 223 April 2026Open source (opens eu-mayors.ec.europa.eu).
06Public tasks
Four public tasks, one approach
T-01
Urban planning and smart cities
Satellite imagery and the data derived from it show land use, sealing, green cover and urban expansion over time. Planners use them to compare districts, to plan new green space and to follow how a measure changes an area.
T-02
Public administration
Administrations can use satellite-based services to watch urban heat, air quality, land use and infrastructure across their whole territory. The harder part is often procurement: describing the service so that providers can answer and offers can be compared.
T-03
Disaster management
Before an event, satellite data helps to map flood risk and other hazards. After floods, storms or landslides, satellite imagery supports rapid damage mapping. The Copernicus Emergency Management Service provides such maps free of charge, and authorised users request its activation Source: Copernicus EMS, Copernicus Emergency Management Service, accessed 7 October 2026Copernicus Emergency Management ServiceAbout the Copernicus EMS On-Demand Mapping serviceaccessed 7 October 2026Open source (opens mapping.emergency.copernicus.eu).
T-04
Emergency services and public safety
Where terrestrial networks fail, satellite communication keeps teams connected. Satellite navigation (GNSS) gives responders accurate positions for vehicles and teams in the field.
Ministries and funding agencies with a research or funding portfolio will find more under R&D Compass for funding agencies.
07Limits
When satellite data is not the answer
Limit 01
Clouds and light
Optical sensors cannot see through cloud. Radar can, but it answers different questions. Which sensor fits depends on the task.
Limit 02
Revisit and timing
Satellites pass over an area at intervals. For tasks that need continuous measurement, ground sensors are often the better choice.
Limit 03
Local detail
Some questions need field surveys, building data or local sensors. We say so, and we combine sources where that gives a better answer.
Frequently asked questions
Q1How can satellite data help a city adapt to heat and heavy rain?
Thermal satellite data shows land surface temperature across a whole city, which helps to locate heat islands Source: Copernicus Land Monitoring Service, accessed 4 October 2026Copernicus Land Monitoring ServiceCopernicus Land Monitoring Service (incl. Land Surface Temperature products)accessed 4 October 2026Open source (opens land.copernicus.eu), and optical data shows where green cover is missing. Maps of sealed surfaces show where rainwater can no longer soak away, a starting point for heavy-rain planning Source: Copernicus Land Monitoring Service, accessed 4 October 2026Copernicus Land Monitoring ServiceHigh Resolution Layer Imperviousnessaccessed 4 October 2026Open source (opens land.copernicus.eu). Both are planning inputs, to be combined with local data such as elevation models and drainage plans.
Q2Which satellite-based services can a municipality procure today?
Providers offer services for urban heat, flood mapping, land cover and land use, change detection and vegetation, among others. Which one fits depends on the decision it must support, the level of detail and how often the data must be updated. Part of the underlying data is free: Copernicus services and data are provided free of charge Source: European Union, EUR-Lex, 12 May 2021European Union, EUR-LexRegulation (EU) 2021/696 of 28 April 2021 establishing the Union Space Programme and the European Union Agency for the Space Programme12 May 2021Open source (opens eur-lex.europa.eu). A market scan shows which services fit your case and how they compare.
Q3How does a municipality specify a satellite-based service in a tender?
Describe the decision the data must support, the area, the update interval, the accuracy required and the format in which results must arrive. Describe outcomes rather than a sensor or a provider, so that several providers can answer and their offers can be compared. Writing these requirements and evaluating offers against them is part of our requirements and procurement service.
Q4How do satellites support disaster response and emergency services?
Satellite imagery supports rapid damage mapping after floods, storms and other events, and satellite communication keeps teams connected where terrestrial networks fail. In Europe, the Copernicus Emergency Management Service provides this mapping free of charge. Authorised users request an activation, and the maps are published on the service's portal Source: Copernicus EMS, Copernicus Emergency Management Service, accessed 7 October 2026Copernicus Emergency Management ServiceAbout the Copernicus EMS On-Demand Mapping serviceaccessed 7 October 2026Open source (opens mapping.emergency.copernicus.eu).
Q5How can we find out which providers already offer a solution for our problem?
As part of our consulting work, a market scan shows which providers and solutions exist for your problem and how they compare against your requirements. The scan is not limited to providers listed on Spacegraph. If you prefer to look around first, Spacegraph, our discovery platform, has a public marketplace and a free sign-up.
Sources (8)
- Accelerating urban green transition, guided by users, driven by innovation (opens eurisy.eu)
- ESA Acceleration Days: Accelerate Urban Green Transition (opens commercialisation.esa.int)
- Copernicus Land Monitoring Service (incl. Land Surface Temperature products) (opens land.copernicus.eu)
- Regulation (EU) 2021/696 of 28 April 2021 establishing the Union Space Programme and the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (opens eur-lex.europa.eu)
- About the Copernicus EMS On-Demand Mapping service (opens mapping.emergency.copernicus.eu)
- High Resolution Layer Imperviousness (opens land.copernicus.eu)
- ClimateLENS Kick off Meeting (opens geoville.com)
- From Space to City: How Space-Enabled Solutions Support Urban Green Transition, Session 2 (opens eu-mayors.ec.europa.eu)
Contact
Tell us which climate or planning task you want to solve.
Book a call, or send us a message if you prefer to write.
Prefer to talk?
Tell one of our experts about your project. Together we work out where you stand, whether satellite data and AI can help and what a sensible next step would be.
Both calls are free of charge and take place online. You choose a date in our booking calendar.
Prefer to write? Send us a message.
All fields are required.