Greece gets a sharper eye in the sky in local deal

The Hellenic Space Center (HSC) signed a deal on Thursday with local firm TotalView that will give state agencies access to high-quality satellite images - superior to the EU's Copernicus program - that they can use to track wildfires and gauge their aftermath, capture environmental violations, help map property lines, assess farmers' compensation claims and much more. 

The initiative is being bankrolled to the tune of 2,108,000 euros by the Recovery Fund, and "forms the basis for providing a range of reliable solutions to the state mechanisms, with the broader aim of fully covering national satellite observation needs," according to the head of the HSC, Professor Ioannis Daglis.

Daglis added that the state will be purchasing satellite time instead of individual images, getting a much more comprehensive view of the particular situation it is interested in, as well as...