Floods are among Europe’s most frequent and disruptive hazards, often affecting wide areas and overwhelming local response capacity. Civil protection authorities rely on timely, objective information to guide evacuations, prioritise resources, and coordinate recovery measures — even when conditions on the ground are difficult to assess.
To support this need, Finland-based ICEYE operates the world’s largest constellation of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites, capable of monitoring the Earth’s surface continuously, regardless of weather or daylight conditions. By combining these observations with AI-driven analytics, the company delivers precise, up-to-date insights that help emergency managers understand flood extent and track how situations evolve over time.
Through its Flood Rapid Impact (FRI) service, ICEYE applies AI-driven algorithms to automatically process SAR imagery and detect flooded zones. This combination of radar and AI analysis provides a trusted, single source of information, allowing emergency managers to act decisively without waiting for clear skies or field data to arrive.
“SAR satellites provide uninterrupted coverage in any condition,” Sainio notes. “When combined with AI, this allows us to deliver accurate, continuously updated insights within hours, rather than days.”
AI ensures speed, consistency, and accuracy. It is transforming raw observations into insights that guide real-world decisions.
In 2024, during Storm Boris, ICEYE collaborated with the Crisis Information Centre in Poland to deliver near-real-time flood maps that supported national response operations. With early flood observations provided within the first hours of the beginning of the flood event and updated every 6 hours, ICEYE’s data became a go-to reference for assessing flood extent and prioritising relief efforts.
According to ICEYE, the combination of radar imaging and AI analytics enables faster and more consistent situational awareness, particularly in the early stages of a crisis when time is critical. The company’s satellites currently monitor events worldwide, providing data to insurers, governments, and humanitarian organisations.
“AI is not a replacement for trusted data, but a force multiplier — accelerating decisions and helping responders shift from reactive crisis management to proactive risk reduction,” notes Jussi Sainio.
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