Scientists have unveiled a comprehensive roadmap for harnessing satellite technology to revolutionize disease surveillance and public health decision making, revealing both the immense potential and significant barriers that currently limit Earth Observation’s impact on healthcare delivery. The groundbreaking review examined three decades of research and identified 22 major data platforms that could transform how governments and health officials respond to epidemics, environmental hazards, and climate related health threats.
Earth Observation technologies, which gather information about the planet’s surface, atmosphere, and oceans using satellites, aircraft, drones, and ground sensors, have quietly become essential tools for monitoring everything from weather patterns to natural disasters. Now, researchers are discovering these same technologies can track disease outbreaks, assess environmental health risks, and guide public health interventions with unprecedented precision.
The field has exploded over the past 30 years, growing from just 2 scientific publications in 1991 to 266 in 2024. That dramatic expansion reflects growing recognition that environmental factors and human health are deeply interconnected. Satellite data provides insights into disease prevalence and spread, the impact of natural disasters on communities, and whether public health interventions are actually working.
However, the review reveals a frustrating reality. Despite this growth, Earth Observation’s integration into practical public health work remains fragmented. Inconsistent data formats, limited accessibility, and weak collaboration between satellite data producers and health practitioners create barriers that prevent valuable insights from reaching the people who need them most. It’s a classic case of having the right tools but struggling to use them effectively.
Dr. Dhritiraj Sengupta, who led the research while serving as an Earth Observation Scientist at Plymouth Marine Laboratory (he’s currently at GMV), captured the challenge succinctly. The study aims to help both health professionals and Earth Observation specialists understand what opportunities exist and why cross discipline collaboration matters so much.
The research team conducted a detailed bibliometric analysis of 1,751 research documents, mapping the landscape of platforms that combine Earth Observation and health data. Their findings paint a picture of enormous potential hampered by practical obstacles that won’t solve themselves.
One key revelation involves which health issues dominate current research. Air pollution, dengue fever, and cholera feature prominently in studies using satellite imagery and environmental data. Yet the review makes clear that Earth Observation data remains significantly underutilized. There’s so much more these technologies could reveal if researchers and health officials knew how to tap into them properly.
The platforms identified in the study serve different but complementary purposes. Some focus specifically on animal health and zoonotic diseases, those illnesses that jump between animals and humans like Ebola or avian flu. These systems provide crucial data for early detection, helping prevent outbreaks before they spiral into major public health crises.
Other platforms concentrate on how climate change and environmental factors influence health outcomes. As global temperatures rise and ecosystems shift, disease patterns are changing too. Mosquitoes carrying malaria and dengue are moving into new regions. Extreme weather events are becoming more frequent, bringing health risks ranging from heat stroke to waterborne diseases. Understanding these connections requires the kind of large scale environmental monitoring that only satellites can provide.
The strategic implications extend far beyond academic research. Policymakers need reliable data to allocate resources effectively. Technologists need clear guidance on which capabilities to develop next. Health systems need resilient infrastructure that can turn data into actionable intelligence during crises.
Prof. Shubha Sathyendranath MBE, co-author and Merit Remote Sensing Scientist at Plymouth Marine Laboratory, emphasized Earth Observation’s core strength lies in providing user ready data at various scales. This supports evidence based decision making and offers spatial and temporal coverage that ground based monitoring simply can’t match. You can track environmental changes across entire continents or zoom in on specific communities, and you can do it continuously rather than relying on occasional field surveys.
Yet significant challenges persist. There are skill gaps among potential users who don’t understand how to interpret satellite data. Privacy concerns arise when tracking population movements or environmental exposures. Perhaps most frustratingly, there’s a lack of political recognition. Many policymakers don’t yet view Earth Observation data as a valid source of evidence for making healthcare decisions, even though the science supporting it is robust.
The economic picture is mixed. Earth Observation offers cost effective insights on a global scale, especially when compared to traditional ground based monitoring across vast areas. However, funding remains a major hurdle. Building and maintaining satellite systems requires substantial investment, and ensuring that low and middle income countries can access and use this data demands sustained financial commitment.
Technologically, advancements like Synthetic Aperture Radar and high resolution imaging open novel opportunities for disease forecasting and environmental monitoring. These tools can peer through clouds, operate at night, and detect subtle changes in landscapes or water quality that might indicate emerging health threats. But gaps in data quality and resolution still limit what’s possible, particularly for tracking localized outbreaks or monitoring smaller communities.
Environmental considerations add another layer of complexity. While Earth Observation platforms enhance analysis of climate trends and disease outbreaks, they also raise concerns about carbon emissions from launching and operating satellites, plus the growing problem of space debris. Addressing these factors holistically matters if we want to leverage this technology responsibly.
The social dimension can’t be ignored either. Public health awareness grows when data becomes transparent and accessible, allowing communities to understand risks they face. However, cultural differences in how people interpret scientific information and technological barriers in regions with limited internet connectivity pose real obstacles to democratizing access to Earth Observation insights.
The study, titled “Sensing Human Health from Space: An Assessment of Applications and Big Data Platforms,” was published in Remote Sensing Applications: Society and Environment. The international research team included scientists from Plymouth Marine Laboratory, University of Southampton, GMV Portugal, Italy’s Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise “G. Caporale,” Environmental Research Group Oxford Ltd, Gmatics Italy, and Germany’s Brockmann Consult GmbH.
Dr. Sengupta is currently working with the European Space Agency’s EO4Health Resilience project to integrate information about different types of diseases into one digital platform, scheduled for launch in summer 2025. That initiative aims to improve accessibility of Earth Observation data for medical professionals and support more informed public health decision making, potentially preventing deaths from disease through earlier detection and more targeted interventions.
As satellite technology continues advancing and data processing becomes more sophisticated, the gap between what’s technically possible and what’s practically implemented needs to narrow. The review serves as both a celebration of progress and a call to action, urging stakeholders across disciplines to work together more effectively. The tools exist. The data is flowing. What’s needed now is the collaboration, funding, and political will to transform this scientific capability into real world public health impact.
