Today's Edition
SADEQ ALKHOORI (ABU DHABI)
When storms, clouds or darkness limit visibility, radar satellites can still keep watch. That capability is becoming more important as Abu Dhabi-based Space42 expands its Foresight constellation to five fully operational Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellites, strengthening the UAE’s ability to monitor changes across Earth in different weather and lighting conditions.
The company said Foresight-3, Foresight-4 and Foresight-5 are now fully operational, adding to its Earth observation capacity and supporting faster access to geospatial intelligence for governments and industries.
Unlike optical satellites, SAR satellites use radar signals to capture data about the Earth’s surface. They can collect imagery at night, through cloud cover and during adverse weather, making them useful during emergencies and in areas that are difficult to monitor from the ground.
The relevance of that capability was underlined in March 2026, when an intense weather system brought heavy rain, hail and flooding to parts of the UAE and wider Gulf.
According to the Emirates News Agency (WAM), Yanas Mountain in Ras Al Khaimah recorded the country’s highest rainfall during the weather phenomenon at 244mm, followed by Manama in Ajman at 234.7mm and Al Hayer in Al Ain at 234.1mm.
For agencies responding to such conditions, the challenge is to understand where water has accumulated, which areas remain accessible and which roads, assets or communities may need attention when visibility is poor.
Khalid Al Awadhi, Chief Advanced Programmes Management Officer at Space42, told Aletihad that the expanded constellation moves Space42 beyond individual satellite deployments into a more mature Earth observation system built around “continuity, speed and reach”.
He said the constellation can provide faster all-weather, day-and-night imaging across strategically important regions, currently covering more than 90% of where the world’s population resides.
For governments, cities and infrastructure operators, the value lies in understanding what has changed, where attention is needed and how quickly teams should respond.
“The real value lies in the difference between seeing change and knowing what that change means: where it matters, how urgent it is, and what response should follow,” Al Awadhi said.
Space42’s GIQ platform is designed to support that process. Created in partnership with the UAE Space Agency, the AI-powered geospatial intelligence platform brings together data from Foresight, third-party Earth observation sources, high-altitude platforms and drones. It then helps detect change, assess risk, identify patterns and produce outputs that agencies and operators can use.
The UAE Space Agency said Earth observation supports the country’s wider space strategy by helping government and industry independently collect, process and analyse critical geospatial data. It said these capabilities support infrastructure development, environmental monitoring, resource management and public safety, while aligning with the National Space Strategy 2031.
Dr Basam Dahy, a postdoctoral associate at NYU Abu Dhabi and remote sensing researcher, said satellite observations are becoming more important because governments are expected to make faster, evidence-based decisions.
He said radar-based satellite data can help detect ground movement, infrastructure deformation, flooding, soil moisture variations and coastal changes, allowing governments and industries to move from reactive management to proactive risk monitoring and early warning.
Still, satellite data cannot stand alone. Dr Dahy said Earth observation products should be validated whenever possible with field observations, local expertise and complementary datasets.
That connection between satellite data and local verification, he said, is what gives Earth observation its real value. “The future of Earth observation is not simply about collecting data, but about enabling better decisions,” Dr Dahy said.
