Terra Em Foco: Driving Portugal Resilience With Sattech
On 17–18 March 2026, the city of Coimbra became the center of Portugal’s space industry as it hosted the Terra em Foco 2026 conference. This third edition of the national Earth Observation event brought together researchers, businesses, and policymakers to discuss accelerating the use of satellite data for real-world decision-making. EOS Data Analytics attended the event, represented by Managing Director Oleksii Shchehliuk, CBDO Artem Berehovyi, and Head of Сustom Solutions and Intelligence (CSI) Oleksii Neskorovnyi.
The recent trail of devastating storms in central Portugal and severe wildfire seasons made the emergency monitoring sessions at Terra em Foco one of the most anticipated parts of the agenda. It’s clear that using satellite intelligence to track extreme phenomena is now the top priority for Portuguese authorities looking to build regional resilience.
This context set the stage for the presentation of Bruno Carvalho, Managing Director of EOSSAT, on the innovative EOSDA’s forest monitoring project currently being implemented in the Coimbra Region under the ESA InCubed programme. This project, where high-quality imagery from EOS SAT-1 and satellite intelligence help identify wildfire risks and evaluate forest recovery, is a direct response to the climate crises that have affected Portugal over the last years.
EOSDA is fully invested in reducing the impact of wildfires on local communities. For 12 years, we’ve been providing innovative satellite intelligence solutions for businesses across various industries. Today, we are applying that expertise to help Portugal stay resilient in the face of global climate challenges. While this is a local initiative for now, we see huge potential to scale it to other countries facing similar risks.
Beyond the immediate focus on disaster management, the conference explored the future of European space infrastructure and the growing role of private satellite constellations. A major theme was how the industry can combine Artificial Intelligence with high-performance computing to process massive amounts of environmental data faster than ever before. These sessions highlighted a clear shift toward automated, smart systems that can monitor everything from forest health to marine sustainability in near real-time.
The focus on satellite-based geospatial intelligence and space infrastructure at the conference was very relevant to our work. Hearing from the industry leaders gives us the insights we need to provide the best possible solutions to our customers.
Across the two-day program, the EOSDA team followed discussions on the development direction of the Portuguese space and Earth Observation ecosystem, including public priorities, local market needs, and upcoming missions from European and regional stakeholders. The team also met with satellite data providers, representatives of the Portuguese Space Agency, and local municipalities to better understand where Earth Observation can solve immediate operational problems.
It was great to meet some of our Portuguese partners, like Geosat, in person. Our discussions confirmed strong alignment in building a resilient space ecosystem, specifically through collaboration between a national satellite operator and a space data intelligence company to deliver analytics at the last mile.
In her closing message, Secretary of State Helena Canhão highlighted how essential Earth observation has become for Portugal’s safety. She pointed out that rapid climate change has placed the country in a challenging position in terms of land and resource management, making satellite technologies a necessity rather than a luxury. This vision perfectly mirrors EOSDA’s commitment to providing the actionable data Portugal needs to protect its natural resources.
