Space data is increasingly becoming a tool for protecting people, food and health on Earth
The European Space Agency marks Earth Day on 22 April with a message that today is far broader than symbolism and ceremonial statements. At the centre of that message is a very practical idea: changes on Earth are no longer observed only for scientific analysis, but so that decisions can be made more quickly in the field on the basis of those data. Satellites in orbit play a key role in this because they enable an almost continuous and global insight into the condition of vegetation, soil, moisture, temperature, precipitation and other indicators that directly affect food security, public health and the resilience of communities to climate change.
ESA is developing such an approach through Earth observation programmes and partnerships with international institutions, development banks, national authorities and scientific teams. The idea is not only to collect large quantities of data, but to turn them into warnings, risk assessments and operational maps that local authorities can use before a problem grows into a crisis. In practice, this means that space technology is now involved in very concrete tasks: from monitoring conditions favourable for the breeding of desert locusts to assessing the risk of outbreaks of mosquito-borne diseases.
From observing the planet to decisions in the field
Satellite Earth observation has in recent years become one of the most important sources of data for understanding climate and environmental change. The advantage of such a system is that it equally covers remote, hard-to-reach and politically unstable areas, where traditional field measurements are often delayed or cannot be carried out continuously. When such data are linked with meteorological information, historical patterns, machine learning models and local observations, the result is a tool that can serve as an early warning system.
This is precisely the direction ESA is highlighting on this year’s Earth Day. The emphasis is no longer only on satellites confirming that the climate is changing, but also on turning data from space into operational responses for agriculture, healthcare and public services. Such a shift is particularly important at a time when weather extremes, changes in precipitation patterns, the spread of pests and health risks are becoming ever more strongly linked to climate pressures.
Early detection of desert locusts as a defence against crop loss
One of the most striking examples comes from East Africa, where desert locust invasions in recent years have shown how quickly an agricultural threat can become a humanitarian problem. ESA and partner organisations warn that the desert locust is among the most destructive agricultural pests in the world. A smaller swarm can contain tens of millions of individuals, and such a mass can destroy large areas of vegetation and crops in a very short time, especially in regions that already depend on sensitive food production and irregular rainfall.
East Africa went through the most severe infestation in the past seven decades between 2019 and 2022. That episode showed two things. First, that traditional field patrols alone are not enough when the problem develops across a vast area. Second, that for successful control it is crucial to act before locusts gain the ability to fly and form large swarms. Experts therefore particularly target the so-called hopper stage, that is, young, still wingless individuals, because it is precisely at that point that intervention can prevent a population explosion.
Why satellites are more important than traditional patrols
Traditional field monitoring is slow, expensive and logistically demanding. In many parts of the region, inspectors and agronomic services have to visit remote or unsafe areas, and by the time they get confirmation of locust breeding or spread, the damage can already be considerable. Satellite systems bring an important advantage here because they provide broad spatial coverage and repeated imaging that reveals changes in vegetation, moisture and soil condition.
With partners including VITO Remote Sensing, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development of East Africa IGAD and the World Bank, ESA has developed a desert locust monitoring service that relies on Earth observation data. At the heart of the system is an assessment of habitat suitability for the breeding and development of young individuals, and the results are integrated into the publicly available East Africa Hazards Watch platform. Updated maps and warnings are published there to help the competent services determine where to send teams, when to respond and how to allocate limited resources.
How Sentinel imagery, vegetation and weather conditions are combined
Operationally, the system does not rest on one type of data, but on a combination of several sources. Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite imagery is used for more detailed monitoring of vegetation and possible impacts on crops, while Sentinel-3 provides an almost daily picture of changes in vegetation cover, which is especially important after rainfall. Rain and rapid vegetation growth create favourable conditions for locust breeding, so such changes are one of the signals the models look for.
Additional data on soil, altitude and weather conditions are also used. On that basis, the statistical model MaxEnt was developed to estimate probable breeding zones and time windows in which egg laying is most likely. This means that the competent services do not receive only a general piece of information that a danger exists, but spatially specific maps showing where the risk will be highest over the next ten days or so. That level of detail directly affects the effectiveness of control measures.
Less indiscriminate treatment, greater precision of interventions
An important consequence of this approach is not only better crop protection, but also a reduced need for broad and indiscriminate spraying with insecticides. When authorities have a better estimate of where the highest-risk areas are and at what developmental stage the population is, interventions can be more targeted and costs lower. At the same time, this reduces pressure on the environment and the risk of unnecessary chemical treatment of large areas.
ESA stresses in its materials that the system was developed as an open solution, based on open data and open-source software, which increases the possibility of expanding the model to other regions and other types of climate-driven agricultural threats. In this way, satellite technology moves from the sphere of high-tech infrastructure into a very practical framework of food security, risk management and crop insurance.
Mosquitoes, climate and health systems: another front of early warning
The second example highlighted by ESA relates to public health and mosquito-borne diseases, above all dengue, but also malaria. Here the logic is similar to that in agriculture: changes in climate, temperature, humidity, precipitation and land use affect the environmental conditions in which disease vectors spread and survive. When these patterns are analysed early enough, health authorities get a chance to act before the number of infected people rises sharply.
According to the World Health Organization, around half of the world’s population is now exposed to the risk of dengue, and between 100 and 400 million infections are estimated each year. WHO also points out that this is a disease particularly widespread in tropical and subtropical areas, predominantly in urban and suburban environments. In such circumstances, early warning is not only a technical question of epidemiological surveillance, but also a question of hospital capacity, the supply of healthcare institutions, the organisation of laboratories, the deployment of staff and the timely treatment of areas where an increase in risk is expected.
DIRE: a digital platform for predicting epidemic surges
ESA’s Φ-lab, in cooperation with UNICEF, developed the DIRE platform, that is, the Disease Incidence and Resource Estimator, which combines satellite-derived environmental data, epidemiological information and machine learning methods. The aim of the system is to turn complex climate and health data into risk maps and practical recommendations for action. In other words, the tool is designed not only to offer health authorities a scientific model, but also an operational overview of the areas where preparedness should be increased.
According to available project descriptions, DIRE relies on a climate-based set of models that takes into account geographical differences in disease incidence. In this way, it seeks to avoid the common problem of generic models that work well in one region and significantly worse in another. In the case of dengue, such adaptation is particularly important because the spread of the disease is influenced not only by temperature and precipitation, but also by population density, urbanisation, drainage, local habits, seasonality and the availability of healthcare.
Brazil and Peru as important pilot examples
Pilot projects in Brazil and Peru, two countries that regularly face a heavy burden from dengue, have shown that the model can be more accurate than earlier forecasting methods. This does not mean that it is a tool that can completely replace traditional epidemiological surveillance, but it shows that the combination of satellite data and machine learning can give health services additional weeks to prepare.
In publicly available ESA materials, it is stated that DIRE helps identify high-risk areas, prepare clinics and health points, deploy staff in advance and direct resources such as fumigation or vaccination to where they will have the greatest effect. In systems already burdened by shortages of people, equipment and financial resources, a few weeks of advantage can mean a significant difference between a controlled rise in cases and hospital overload.
Why the climate component is crucial
The connection between climate change and the spread of mosquito-borne diseases in recent years is no longer a marginal topic, but an integral part of public health planning. Higher temperatures, changed rainfall patterns, longer periods of humidity and rapid urbanisation create conditions in which certain mosquito species spread more easily or remain longer in areas where they were previously not so present. This does not mean that climate alone produces an epidemic, but it does mean that it changes the environmental framework within which the risk increases.
That is precisely why satellite data are useful to health authorities. They do not register the virus directly, but track environmental conditions associated with disease transmission: moisture, temperature patterns, surface changes, bodies of water and other indicators. When these data are cross-referenced with medical records and local patterns of disease spread, the model can warn that a critical period is approaching in a certain region. This is the key difference between reactive and preventive action.
From space infrastructure to local resilience
The common thread of both examples is that the technology does not end at the satellite. The real value arises only when the data are translated into a language understood by ministries, local administrations, agronomic services, epidemiologists and humanitarian organisations. That is why ESA in its programmes is increasingly talking about action, and not only observation. In this approach, space infrastructure serves as a basis for political and operational decisions on Earth.
This is also important because of the issue of accessibility. Systems based on open data and open-source software are easier to transfer, adapt and integrate into existing regional mechanisms. In East Africa, this means linking with platforms for monitoring risk and food security. In Latin America, it means strengthening the capacity of health systems to assess before the peak of the season where the pressure will be greatest. In both cases, it is the same pattern: space does not solve the problem by itself, but it enables institutions to respond earlier and more precisely.
The broader message of Earth Day
In a broader sense, the message ESA is sending this year for Earth Day is that the fight against climate and environmental risks no longer begins only after a disaster. It begins with an earlier understanding of the signals that are already visible in the data. In an era in which climate disruptions spill over into food production, pest migration, water availability and public health, the ability to anticipate becomes one of the main measures of resilience.
That is why examples such as the desert locust monitoring system or the DIRE platform are important even beyond the sector in which they originated. They show how satellite programmes can be used to solve very concrete social issues, from crop protection to relieving pressure on hospitals. At the same time, they raise the question of how willing governments, international institutions and regional organisations will be to invest in models that do not act as spectacularly as the launch of a rocket, but have direct consequences for the everyday lives of millions of people.
In a world in which climate risks are appearing less and less as isolated incidents and more and more as a permanent pattern of instability, it is precisely such tools that can determine whether communities will respond in time or only when the damage is already great. Space data are therefore today no longer just a view of the planet from above, but are increasingly becoming infrastructure for decisions made on the ground, where food, health and the safety of the population are ultimately decided.
Sources:- European Space Agency – overview of Earth observation activities and applications of satellite data in environmental protection and resilience building (link)- ESA Global Development Assistance – case study on monitoring desert locust outbreaks in East Africa, model development and integration into East Africa Hazards Watch (link)- ESA Global Development Assistance – overview of resilience to locust invasions and the role of satellite data in early warning (link)- IGAD Resilience – description of the Hazard Watch platform and the regional risk information system (link)- World Health Organization – official data on dengue, global risk and the estimated number of infections annually (link)- ESA Φ-lab – description of the DIRE platform and pilot examples in Brazil and Peru for early warning of mosquito-borne diseases (link)- ESA Φ-lab CIN – data on the research developed with UNICEF, recognitions and funding for the operational phase of the project (link)- EARTHDAY.ORG – official Earth Day page and framework for marking 22 April 2026 (link)
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