Opening satellite data for smarter city planning
European cities are starting to use satellite data in new ways to manage urban spaces better. The SPACE4Cities project supports this shift by turning space data into practical tools for daily city work.
The project is funded under the European Union’s Horizon Europe programme and supported by the EU Agency for the Space Programme. Its main goal is simple. Help cities use European satellite data to become more sustainable, resilient, and efficient.
How SPACE4Cities works
SPACE4Cities uses a model called Pre Commercial Procurement, or PCP. Through this approach, public authorities buy research and development services instead of finished products. As a result, several companies work in parallel on new solutions that do not yet exist on the market.
This setup allows cities to guide innovation based on real needs. At the same time, companies can test their ideas in real urban settings over a longer period. In this project, the focus lies on tools that cities can reuse across Europe. These tools support public space management, green areas, transport systems, infrastructure maintenance, and overall city resilience.
From ideas to working prototypes
In November 2025, SPACE4Cities moved into its second PCP phase. During this stage, the project selected ten companies to turn their concepts into working prototypes. Together, these companies received €900,000 in development funding.
In the past, cities mainly used satellite data for weather tracking, disaster response, or navigation. Now, however, SPACE4Cities explores how the same data can support climate adaptation and daily city planning. Therefore, the project looks beyond traditional use cases.
Urban challenges addressed by the project
The selected solutions target common problems faced by European cities. These include flood detection, heat island monitoring, traffic emissions, and wildfire prevention. In addition, several tools help protect cultural heritage, detect underground pipe leaks, and track the condition of green spaces, roads, and bridges.
According to project coordinator Renske Martijnse Hartikka from Forum Virium Helsinki, the results look promising. Many of these solutions could soon be in use across Europe. Moreover, they offer clear efficiency gains and cost savings for cities.
Clear benefits for municipalities
Each solution offers different benefits. Some tools help cities plan for climate risks such as floods, heat waves, or wildfires. Others support smarter urban greening and biodiversity protection.
At the same time, several solutions focus on infrastructure health. By using satellite-based monitoring, cities can detect tiny ground movements or structural stress. This helps them plan maintenance earlier, avoid failures, and reduce long term costs.
In addition, some tools support data-driven decision-making. With reliable satellite data, cities can track progress on climate goals, improve public health outcomes, and plan sustainable development more effectively.
Real-world pilots start in 2026
In July 2026, SPACE4Cities will select the five strongest prototypes from the current ten. These teams will share €1.25 million in additional funding. More importantly, they will test their solutions in real-life pilots.
The pilots will run in 15 European cities, including Amsterdam, Athens, Ghent, Guimarães, and Helsinki. Ten more cities will join as Replicator Cities. A call for these cities will open in late spring 2026.
Participating cities will receive a free three-month pilot, support for travel or engagement costs, and access to peer learning with other cities in the project. After the pilot phase ends in spring 2027, the solutions will move toward full commercial use.
Ten selected solutions and suppliers
The ten prototype teams include both individual companies and consortia. They come from seven European countries. Their solutions cover a wide range of urban needs.
The selected projects include wildfire prevention, cultural heritage protection, urban stability monitoring, climate risk detection, traffic emission reduction, infrastructure monitoring, green space planning, underground pipe leak detection, and biodiversity management.
Strong partnerships behind the project
Forum Virium Helsinki leads the SPACE4Cities project. It works closely with the cities of Amsterdam, Ghent, Guimarães, and Athens. Other partners include the Open and Agile Smart Cities network and Aerospace Valley, a major European space cluster.
Together, these partners connect city needs with space technology expertise. As a result, SPACE4Cities helps turn satellite data into practical solutions for cities across Europe.
