# Disaster management with satellite data and communication After a flood, storm, wildfire or earthquake, satellite images show within hours or days which areas are affected and how badly buildings, roads and facilities are damaged. In Europe, the Copernicus Emergency Management Service produces these maps free of charge at the request of authorised users. Where ground networks fail, satellite communication keeps emergency teams connected. ## How satellites map damage after a disaster After a disaster, the Copernicus Emergency Management Service (CEMS) provides geospatial information within hours or days. The service is available around the clock, every day of the year, and covers the extent of the event and the damage to buildings, transport and facilities [2]. Its first products are derived from the earliest suitable image taken after the event [1]. Resolution decides what an image can show. Images with a resolution of 1 metre or better suit detailed assessments of damage to infrastructure; images between 4 and 10 metres suit landscape-scale analysis such as large-area flood mapping. In selected activations, aircraft and drones supplement the satellites, and aircraft can often deliver even in cloudy weather [3]. Radar satellites observe by day and night and in all weather conditions [10]. The service delivers its results as standardised products [1]: - **First estimate**: a very fast, rough assessment of the most affected places. - **Delineation**: the impact and extent of the event, such as the flooded or burnt area, with updates on request. - **Grading**: the degree of damage, where it occurs and how far it extends. - **Situational report**: an online summary of the event and its impacts, started within 4 hours of the activation and updated until the activation closes. ## How to request the maps Only authorised users can activate CEMS rapid mapping, among them the National Focal Points of EU Member States and of the countries in the European Civil Protection Mechanism. A city, region or other public authority coordinates with the relevant authorised user and channels its request through them [4]. The mapping is free of charge, and all data and results are published for viewing and download, except for sensitive activations [2]. For major disasters worldwide, the International Charter Space and Major Disasters provides satellite data and derived maps to relief organisations. Registered users, typically national disaster management authorities, request it through a single access point that operates around the clock at no cost [5]. ## Emergency communication via satellite In large emergencies, when ground infrastructure collapses, secure and interoperable satellite communication becomes essential [9]. For public authorities in the EU, GOVSATCOM is the component of the EU Space Programme for secure satellite communication, used in particular in crisis management. Its hub works around the clock as a single point that connects governmental users with satellite communication resources [6]. The hub started initial operations in January 2026 and provides secure satellite capacity pooled by five Member States [7]. Users are authorised by their Member State, and their access rights are managed by the competent GOVSATCOM authority that each participating Member State designates [8]. In October 2025, a live demonstration by the EUSPA-funded research project GEXTRECS used secure satellite communication to deliver Copernicus Emergency Management Service products and Galileo positioning information to first responders [9]. **Figure:** When ground networks fail, the GOVSATCOM hub connects governmental users with satellite communication resources around the clock, so command posts and teams in the affected area stay connected. In an October 2025 demonstration, secure satellite communication delivered CEMS products and Galileo positions to first responders. Schematic drawing. ## What you get - **Damage maps** for the affected area: extent of the event and damage grades [1]. - **Data for your own maps**: results published for download [2], which your GIS team can combine with its maps of critical infrastructure. - **Connectivity** for command posts and teams when ground-based networks are disrupted [6]. ## Limits **Limits** - **The first image is not always good:** Rapid mapping uses the first available image, which can be partly covered by clouds, taken at a steep angle or cover only part of the area \[3]. - **Hours to days:** Geospatial information arrives within hours or days of an activation \[2], and mapping can only start once a suitable image after the event exists \[1]. - **Comparisons need earlier images:** Comparing the situation before and after an event needs images from before the disaster, and these are not always available for the place and time needed \[3]. ## How we help Free maps help only if the administration knows how to request them, who reads them and how they reach the field. We help you map these routes and the people involved, specify what a damage mapping or satellite communication service must deliver in [requirements and procurement](https://leto.space/consulting/procurement/), and test the chain in a pilot or exercise during [implementation](https://leto.space/consulting/implementation/). For commercial services, [Spacegraph](https://leto.space/spacegraph/), our discovery platform, has a use-case category "Disaster response & damage". ## Related use cases - [Mapping flood risk and early warning](https://leto.space/use-cases/flood-risk-mapping/): Where water collects before the next flood, and how warnings work. - [Connecting remote sensors via satellite IoT](https://leto.space/use-cases/satellite-iot/): How gauges and sensors send data where there is no mobile network. - [Satellite data for cities and regions](https://leto.space/cities-and-regions/): All use cases for administrations, and how we work with them. ## Frequently asked questions ### Can a city request Copernicus rapid mapping directly? Only authorised users can request the service, for example the National Focal Points of EU Member States. A public authority that is not an authorised user coordinates with the relevant authorised user and channels its request through them [4]. The city's civil protection staff should know this route before an emergency. ### How fast are the first maps available? Rapid mapping delivers geospatial information within hours or days of an activation. A first estimate product gives a very fast but rough view of the most affected places, and an online situational report starts within 4 hours of the activation [1]. The first maps rest on the first available satellite image, which may be partly covered by clouds or cover only part of the area [3]. ### How do we prepare, and what does a pilot look like? Prepare before the emergency: know the request route, keep base maps of critical assets up to date, and agree how damage maps reach the teams in the field. A pilot can test this chain in an exercise, together with a satellite communication link for a command post. Our [consulting overview](https://leto.space/consulting/) shows the path from the problem to the pilot. ## Sources 1. [Rapid Mapping for Emergency Response Portfolio, Copernicus Emergency Management Service, accessed 2026-10-06](https://mapping.emergency.copernicus.eu/about/rapid-mapping-portfolio/) 2. [About the Copernicus EMS On-Demand Mapping service, Copernicus Emergency Management Service, accessed 2026-10-07](https://mapping.emergency.copernicus.eu/about/) 3. [Using Earth Observation Data, Copernicus Emergency Management Service, accessed 2026-10-06](https://mapping.emergency.copernicus.eu/about/using-of-earth-observation-data/) 4. [Who can request the service, Copernicus Emergency Management Service, accessed 2026-10-06](https://mapping.emergency.copernicus.eu/about/who-can-request-the-service/) 5. [What is the Charter? The International Charter: Space and Major Disasters, International Charter Space and Major Disasters, accessed 2026-10-08](https://disasterscharter.org/about-the-charter) 6. [GOVSATCOM Hub, EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), accessed 2026-10-06](https://www.euspa.europa.eu/govsatcom-hub) 7. [Cyprus Completes First Operational Use of EU GOVSATCOM HUB Services, Marking a Milestone in European Secure Connectivity, EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 2026-03-10](https://www.euspa.europa.eu/pressroom/press-releases/cyprus-completes-first-operational-use-eu-govsatcom-hub-services-marking) 8. [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) 9. [Using Space to Save Lives on Earth, EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 2025-12-01](https://www.euspa.europa.eu/newsroom-events/news/using-space-save-lives-earth) 10. [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) Page: