The South African National Space Agency (Sansa) has launched three earth observation decision support tools to translate satellite data into actionable intelligence on air pollution, flood risk and water security.

The tools, covering air quality, disaster management and water management, were built through extensive consultation between government, industry, academia and environmental practitioners and marks a significant step in Sansa's mission to put space technology to work for everyday South African problems.

The air quality management tool has been developed to provide real-time, satellite-derived forecasts of key pollutants across South Africa and uses the Air Quality Index to give municipalities, regulators and industry a clear, month-by-month picture of air quality in towns and cities nationwide, flagging dominant pollutants, likely sources and trends over time to support public health interventions and compliance monitoring.

Additionally, with climate-related disasters intensifying, the disaster management decision support tool focuses on flood risk, offering real-time risk mapping, post-disaster damage assessment and predictive early-warning capabilities designed to help authorities protect lives, infrastructure and economic assets before and after a flood hits.

Moreover, the water management decision support tool monitors water quantity and quality at dam and catchment level using satellite indicators, tracking long-term trends and providing early warnings for threats such as eutrophication, arming water managers and municipalities with the intelligence needed to secure South Africa's water future.

Sansa, in a media release, highlighted that the new decision support tools demonstrate the agency’s commitment to transforming satellite-derived information into practical solutions that address real-world challenges.

The tools are expected to support a range of users across government, the private sector, research institutions, and civil society, while contributing to national priorities related to environmental management, climate adaptation, disaster resilience and sustainable development.

During the launch on July 3, Sansa research, application and development manager for the earth observation division Dr Zakariyyaa Oumar noted that Sansa was expanding its decision support tools portfolio by introducing agriculture/rangeland, built environment and forestry decision support tools for the 2026/27 financial year.

Additionally, Sansa also plans to introduce marine and maritime, as well as mining decision support tools in the 2027/28 financial year.

He explained that this phased approach would broaden the application of earth observation services across key sectors of the South African economy.

Through these tools, Oumar said, Sansa aimed to establish long-term partnerships that ensured these decision support services were operationally embedded within user organisations.

The organisation’s strategic objectives for the decision support tools include establishing service level agreements with government departments; developing partnerships with State-owned entities and the private sector; and ensuring continuous maintenance and enhancement of the tools.

Other objectives include providing user support, training and capacity development; demonstrating the value of space technologies in addressing societal challenges; and transitioning project-based development to sustainable operational services.

Oumar expressed that the decision support tools represented an important milestone in Sansa’s journey towards delivering operational, user-driven earth observation services, noting that they had been shaped by stakeholder requirements, enabled through the Space Infrastructure Hub initiative and designed to support informed decision-making.

“Together, as a country, we continue to make a meaningful impact through research, innovation and service excellence,” he concluded.