Finnish partnership to improve water quality monitoring

The Finnish Environment Institute (Syke) and the company specialized in hyperspectral satellites and artificial intelligence, Kuva Space, have signed a collaboration agreement to strengthen environmental monitoring.

With the help of artificial intelligence (AI) and the collection of new satellite data, the Institute will gather more detailed information about the algae species present in Finland’s lakes and coastal waters. This data will allow for more precise identification of the composition of algae species.

Regarding hyperspectral technology, the group leader at the Finnish Environment Institute, Jenni Attila, indicated: "It is fascinating to see if we can utilize hyperspectral technology and artificial intelligence to identify algae species and assess their biomass. In the future, we are interested in using hyperspectral datasets like Kuva Space's satellite observations in our Tarkka service, which currently utilizes a variety of satellite observations from the EU's Copernicus program."

Kuva Space's Innovative Technology

Since 2016, the Finnish company Kuva Space has been building a large-scale constellation of 100 hyperspectral microsatellites, supported by automated data processing powered by AI.

This technology enables the acquisition of high-quality data that helps address global challenges such as climate change, food security, safety, and emergency preparedness.

The pilot project by Syke and Kuva Space is partly funded by the state research institutes' postdoctoral program. In addition, Kuva Space will participate with its own equipment in the measurement campaigns organized along the coast and in the lakes of Southern Finland during the summer.

Syke, for its part, already uses satellite observations to assess the ecological status of surface waters. The next step is to determine whether this data could help facilitate and enhance reporting, regulation, and restoration activities.