# 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. ## 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. **New to the topic?** - [What are space-enabled solutions?](https://leto.space/knowledge/space-enabled-solutions/): Start here: a short definition of the field. - [What is Earth observation?](https://leto.space/knowledge/earth-observation/): How Earth observation works. ## 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. **Figure:** Illustrative comparison, not real data. Earlier: open land and fields at the edge of a town. Later: the same area with new streets, roofs and car parks. **Before:** Earlier **After:** Later [Use case: tracking land use change and urban expansion](https://leto.space/use-cases/land-use-change/) ## 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. ### 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. [More on strategy and use cases](https://leto.space/consulting/strategy/) ### 2. Requirements and procurement We turn a planning need into requirements that providers can answer, run the procurement and compare the offers you receive. [More on requirements and procurement](https://leto.space/consulting/procurement/) ### 3. Implementation We design pilots with agreed KPIs and steer providers until the solution runs in daily work. [More on implementation](https://leto.space/consulting/implementation/) **Further reading** - [Procurement guide](https://leto.space/knowledge/procurement-guide/): How to buy Earth observation and satellite services. - [Consulting overview](https://leto.space/consulting/): Its FAQ answers whether you need your own GIS team first. For cities and regions, your contact is Katherine Webber-Ing. **Katherine Webber-Ing**, Digital & Green Transformation Consultant [Preparing a tender for a satellite-based service? Talk to us before you write the specification.](https://outlook.office365.com/book/LETOSPACE@leto.space/) ## ClimateLENS: emissions and climate indicators for cities ### ClimateLENS (KlimaBLICK) - **Role:** Stakeholder management, requirements engineering - **Programme:** FFG flagship project - **Lead partner:** GeoVille - **Duration:** October 2025 to March 2028 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 [7]. 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 [7]. 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. Source: ClimateLENS Kick off Meeting [7] [What satellite data can contribute to a city's emissions monitoring](https://leto.space/use-cases/city-emissions-monitoring/) ## Spacegraph, the platform we built for cities We develop [Spacegraph](https://leto.space/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 [1]. After the challenge, ESA invited LETO SPACE to apply for a cooperative agreement [2]. ESA now supports Spacegraph through this cooperative agreement, in coordination with the European Commission's DG CLIMA and the Covenant of Mayors [8]. [Explore Spacegraph](https://spacegraph.com) ## Four public tasks, one approach ### 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. [Tracking land use change](https://leto.space/use-cases/land-use-change/) ### 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. [How we help with procurement](https://leto.space/consulting/procurement/) ### 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 [5]. [Rapid damage mapping after disasters](https://leto.space/use-cases/disaster-rapid-mapping/) ### 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. [Emergency communication after disasters](https://leto.space/use-cases/disaster-rapid-mapping/) Ministries and funding agencies with a research or funding portfolio will find more under [R\&D Compass for funding agencies](https://leto.space/funding-agencies/). ## When satellite data is not the answer **Limits** - **Clouds and light:** Optical sensors cannot see through cloud. Radar can, but it answers different questions. Which sensor fits depends on the task. - **Revisit and timing:** Satellites pass over an area at intervals. For tasks that need continuous measurement, ground sensors are often the better choice. - **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 ### How 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 [3], 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 [6]. Both are planning inputs, to be combined with local data such as elevation models and drainage plans. ### Which 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 [4]. A market scan shows which services fit your case and how they compare. ### How 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](https://leto.space/consulting/procurement/) service. ### How 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 [5]. ### How 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](https://leto.space/spacegraph/), our discovery platform, has a public marketplace and a free sign-up. ## Sources 1. [Accelerating urban green transition, guided by users, driven by innovation, Eurisy, 2025-09-23](https://www.eurisy.eu/accelerating-urban-green-transition-guided-by-users-driven-by-innovation/) 2. [ESA Acceleration Days: Accelerate Urban Green Transition, ESA Commercialisation Gateway, 2025-09-17](https://commercialisation.esa.int/esa-acceleration-days-accelerate-urban-green-transition/) 3. [Copernicus Land Monitoring Service (incl. Land Surface Temperature products), Copernicus Land Monitoring Service, accessed 2026-10-04](https://land.copernicus.eu/en) 4. [Regulation (EU) 2021/696 of 28 April 2021 establishing the Union Space Programme and the European Union Agency for the Space Programme, European Union, EUR-Lex, 2021-05-12](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2021/696/oj/eng) 5. [About the Copernicus EMS On-Demand Mapping service, Copernicus Emergency Management Service, accessed 2026-10-07](https://mapping.emergency.copernicus.eu/about/) 6. [High Resolution Layer Imperviousness, Copernicus Land Monitoring Service, accessed 2026-10-04](https://land.copernicus.eu/en/products/high-resolution-layer-imperviousness) 7. [ClimateLENS Kick off Meeting, GeoVille, 2025-11](https://www.geoville.com/news/newsdetail/climatelens-kick-off-meeting/) 8. [From Space to City: How Space-Enabled Solutions Support Urban Green Transition, Session 2, 2026-04-23](https://eu-mayors.ec.europa.eu/en/events/space-city-how-space-enabled-solutions-support-urban-green-transition-session-2) Page: