# Satellite data for mobility and logistics Logistics and transport companies use satellite data to watch the ports and hubs their supply chains depend on, track fleets where mobile networks end, monitor transport corridors, and navigate by land, air and sea. LETO SPACE ranks your transport use cases by value, helps you procure the service and pilots it on one hub or corridor. ## Where satellite data helps in mobility and logistics From the hubs a supply chain depends on to the vehicles, wagons and vessels that move the goods, satellite data answers questions along the whole transport chain. **New to the technologies?** - [What is Earth observation?](https://leto.space/knowledge/earth-observation/): How satellites observe ports, corridors and land over time. - [What is GNSS?](https://leto.space/knowledge/gnss/): Satellite positioning and timing, explained. - [What is satellite communication?](https://leto.space/knowledge/satellite-communication/): Connectivity where terrestrial networks end. - [Providers on Spacegraph](https://spacegraph.com/en/marketplace): Our discovery platform has a marketplace category for transport and logistics. ## Client project: monitoring global traffic hubs for critical logistics processes One of our four anonymised client projects sits in operations. ### Monitoring global traffic hubs for critical logistics processes. - **Sector:** Mobility and logistics - **Technologies:** Earth observation, AI, Satellite navigation, Satellite communication ## How we help mobility and logistics companies ### 1. Strategy and use cases We rank the use cases in network planning, hub operations and fleet management by value and feasibility. [More on strategy and use cases](https://leto.space/consulting/strategy/) ### 2. Requirements and procurement Requirements for a monitoring, tracking or connectivity service, and a scan of the providers. [More on requirements and procurement](https://leto.space/consulting/procurement/) ### 3. Implementation A pilot on one hub, one corridor or one part of the fleet, measured against KPIs agreed at the start, then the move into operation. [More on implementation](https://leto.space/consulting/implementation/) ### 4. Skills and workshops Training for the teams in planning, operations and asset management who will use the results. [More on skills and workshops](https://leto.space/consulting/workshops/) [Planning a pilot on a hub, a corridor or part of your fleet? Talk to us before you write the specification.](https://outlook.office365.com/book/LETOSPACE@leto.space/) ## Road, rail, aviation and shipping ### Road transport and automotive GNSS serves road transport in three ways: safety, for example connected and automated driving and emergency call services such as eCall; liability and enforcement, such as road user charging and smart tachographs; and the management of vehicle fleets. Satellite imagery provides the base layer of the HD maps that automated vehicles use [1], and Earth observation supports the planning, construction and monitoring of roads [2]. Where mobile networks are weak or absent, satellite communication keeps vehicles and logistics services connected [3]. [Tracking fleets beyond mobile coverage](https://leto.space/use-cases/fleet-tracking/) ### Rail GNSS in rail supports train localisation for future signalling and higher levels of automation, and it enables predictive maintenance, asset tracking and the protection of track workers [4]. Rail freight wagons increasingly carry satellite tracking devices; EUSPA estimates their number at more than 200,000 [2]. Earth observation monitors track deformation across a whole network, trackside vegetation and landslide risk, which reduces the cost of on-site inspections, and ground-motion and vegetation monitoring by radar interferometry is increasingly integrated into operational infrastructure management [1]. [Monitoring rail infrastructure and trackside vegetation](https://leto.space/use-cases/rail-infrastructure-monitoring/) ### Aviation and drones Aviation depends on GNSS for navigation, flight planning and operations, and EGNOS enables LPV-200 approach procedures with minima comparable to ILS CAT I without expensive ground infrastructure. In the drone sector, GNSS enables certified flights beyond visual line of sight and traffic management within U-space, and Galileo HAS supports applications such as BVLOS corridors, precision landing and automated docking. Earth observation helps predict the spread of volcanic ash clouds and, combined with elevation models and population density, supports the ground-risk assessment for drone operations [1]. [Protecting GNSS-dependent operations](https://leto.space/use-cases/gnss-resilience/) ### Shipping, ports and waterways Ships of all sizes are legally required to carry a GNSS receiver or a terrestrial radio navigation system. Satellite imagery is used to assess the environmental impact of ports, to check AIS messages and find vessels that do not send them, and to validate insurance claims, and at open sea satellite communication is the link between ship and shore [5]. Radar satellites observe by day and night in all weather conditions, and high-resolution radar data give port authorities recent information on changes in cargo and passenger ports [1]. [Monitoring global traffic hubs](https://leto.space/use-cases/traffic-hub-monitoring/) ## When satellite data is not the answer in mobility and logistics **Limits** - **An image shows one moment:** An image shows a port or a hub at the moment a satellite passes over it. Where you need a continuous view, satellite imagery complements the data from your own systems, partners and sensors; it does not replace them. - **Clouds and resolution:** Optical sensors cannot see through cloud, and radar answers different questions. Whether a vehicle, a container or only a busy area can be seen depends on the resolution of the data you buy. - **Signals can be disrupted:** GNSS signals can be jammed or spoofed. In shipping, attempted cyberattacks, including GNSS spoofing and jamming, have increased fourfold since February 2020 \[2]. Operations that depend on position need a plan for that case. ## Frequently asked questions ### How can logistics and transport companies use satellite data? Satellite data helps wherever a supply chain or a transport network spans large or remote areas. Satellite positioning tracks and traces vehicles and goods and supports route optimisation and the monitoring of assets in transit. Satellite communication connects vehicles and assets where mobile networks are weak or absent, and Earth observation measures environmental conditions such as emissions, land use and weather [3]. The right starting point is a problem in one of your processes, for example a hub whose disruptions you notice too late, not the data source. ### Which problems does Earth observation solve in mobility and logistics, and which does GNSS solve? Earth observation answers questions about what is on the ground and how it changes: activity in and around ports, deformation of a railway track, vegetation along a line, or the spread of a volcanic ash cloud. Radar satellites observe by day and night and are not affected by weather [1]. GNSS answers questions about position and time: where a truck, a wagon, an aircraft or a drone is, and how it navigates [1]. Satellite communication carries the data where there is no terrestrial network, for example between a ship at sea and the shore [5]. ### How can logistics companies track assets where there is no mobile coverage? A tracking device determines its position by GNSS and sends it over a satellite link instead of a mobile network. ESA names satellite communication as a way to keep logistics and mobility services connected where mobile coverage is inadequate, unreliable or absent, for example in autonomous long-haul transport [3]. At open sea, satellite communication is the main link between a vessel and the shore [5]. Our use case on [tracking fleets beyond mobile coverage](https://leto.space/use-cases/fleet-tracking/) explains the options and their limits. ### How do we start, and what does a first pilot look like? Choose one problem that someone in your organisation owns, for example a hub whose disruptions reach your planning too late, or a fleet that disappears from view on part of its route. A first pilot is measurable and time-boxed: its KPIs are agreed before it starts, and the person responsible for the problem decides at the end whether it goes into operation. Our [consulting overview](https://leto.space/consulting/) shows the path from the problem to operation. ### What data do we need to bring? The locations of the hubs, routes, corridors or assets concerned, the records you already keep, such as telematics, schedules or incident logs, and a description of the decision the data should support. ## Sources 1. [EU Space Market Report 2026, Issue 1, EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 2026-05-26](https://www.euspa.europa.eu/sites/default/files/documents/EU_Space_Market_Report_2026.pdf) 2. [EUSPA EO and GNSS Market Report, Issue 2, 2024, EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 2024](https://www.euspa.europa.eu/sites/default/files/external/publications/euspa_market_report_2024.pdf) 3. [ESA Space Solutions: Space for land mobility, European Space Agency (ESA), ESA Space Solutions, accessed 2026-10-06](https://business.esa.int/mobility-land) 4. [ESA Space Solutions: Space for rail, downstream applications, European Space Agency (ESA), ESA Space Solutions, accessed 2026-10-06](https://business.esa.int/rail) 5. [ESA Space Solutions: Space for maritime, European Space Agency (ESA), ESA Space Solutions, accessed 2026-10-06](https://business.esa.int/maritime) Page: