An app that uses satellite imagery to assist urban planners won the top prize of EUR 2,500 at the Space App Camp 2018 at ESA’s Earth observation centre in Frascati, Italy. It provides a range of data for planners, including information on green spaces, terrain and biodiversity and more, all in one place and at an affordable price. The app’s map interface has a drag and drop feature, which would allow users to compare scenarios pre and post build for their construction projects, through the generation of relevant data, largely derived from Sentinel satellites. This would allow them to see the anticipated impact of constructing a building on local air quality, for example.
To make EO data and services accessible to a wide range of citizens, ESA’s Space App Camp invited developers from across Europe to exchange new ideas with like-minded people and tackle some of the world’s greatest challenges. This year, 24 app developers from 11 countries came together. Working in teams of four, they spent a week transforming the latest Copernicus Sentinel data into information accessible to a broad audience.
During these dazzling dedicated developer days, the Space App Camp teams were able to get valuable insights into Europe’s Earth observation programme Copernicus, what kind of business opportunities it offers and how its services help to tackle global economic and societal challenges.
The Space App Camp 2018 is just the start of the journey for many of this year’s participants. All teams will be invited to bring their ideas to one of ESA’s Business Incubation Centres and to submit them to the Copernicus Masters 2019 – an international idea competition that awards prizes to innovative solutions, developments and ideas for business and society based on Earth observation data.
About the Space App Camp
ESA’s Space App Camp brings programmers together to develop creative and innovative apps. The objective is to make EO data, particularly from Copernicus, accessible to a wide range of businesses and citizens. To achieve this, the Space App Camp seeks to introduce app developers to Copernicus, creating awareness for the numerous possibilities EO data offers as a means of enriching mobile apps. In order to make satellite data accessible on smartphones, the Space App Camp each year brings programmers from across Europe to exchange ideas with like-minded people and tackle some of the world’s greatest challenges. Participants learn about the many ways in which big data from space can be used for mobile apps. Additionally, they will make contacts all over Europe and gain insights into how ESA operates.
