EETAC successfully hosts the 11th CASSINI Hackathon: Space for Water with nearly 100 participants

This edition, focused on water management under the theme Space for Water, was held simultaneously in 10 cities across 10 European countries. In Spain, Barcelona was once again the representing city, with nearly 100 participants forming 11 multidisciplinary teams who worked intensely throughout the weekend in an experience defined by a demanding pace, constant collaboration, and creativity.

The event took place at the Castelldefels School of Telecommunications and Aerospace Engineering (EETAC) at the Parc Mediterrani de la Tecnologia (PMT), allowing participants to live an immersive experience, with the possibility to work and stay overnight on-site. The initiative was driven by a consortium including the Institute of Space Studies of Catalonia (IEEC), the Cartographic and Geological Institute of Catalonia (ICGC), the University of Girona (UdG), and KIMbcn, with the support of the Government of Catalonia and the collaboration of the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) BarcelonaTech, EETAC, and the PMT itself.

The teams developed innovative solutions based on challenges previously defined in a focus group with water and space sector experts. These local challenges were aligned with the three major goals proposed by the CASSINI program: ensuring efficient and equitable access to water, monitoring and preventing pollution, and anticipating risks associated with extreme events. Within this framework, participants addressed issues such as water leak detection, quality monitoring, or flood prediction.

Throughout the weekend, teams received intensive guidance from a broad team of mentors, including technical profiles, geospatial data experts, water sector specialists, and business professionals. Among them were Davoud Omarzadeh (IEEC), Antonio Bueno (UdG), Javier García Robles (Open Cosmos), Roger Oliva (Zenithal Blue), Laura Olivas and Josep Sitjar (SIGTE – UdG), Assumpció Térmens (ICGC), as well as market experts like Carlos Álvarez, Stephany Rivero (KIMbcn), Aaron Wedlich (Novaspace), and Elisabeth Jordà (UPC BarcelonaTech). Water cycle specialists also participated, including Alba Cabrera-Codony, Lino Montoro (UdG), Nicole Arnaud de Aguiar and Joan Ferrer Vaquer (LEQUIA – UdG), Enrique Velasco (ACA), and Carmen Espinosa (Aigües de Vic). This constant support was key to validating proposals, guiding teams, and ensuring solutions met real needs.

Additionally, participants learned firsthand about the space entrepreneurship ecosystem through a session on ESA BIC Barcelona, highlighting the continuity of projects beyond the hackathon.

Regarding technological resources, teams worked with data from the European space program —Copernicus and Galileo— complemented by images and data provided by Open Cosmos and the Cartographic and Geological Institute of Catalonia (ICGC).

The jury, composed of top-tier experts such as Veronica Tercero (Government of Catalonia), Jordi Berenguer (UPC), Vicente Atienza (Barcelona Chamber of Commerce), Antoni Paz (KIMbcn), Sandra Bonillo (UdG), Jordi Corbera (ICGC), Cristina Protasio (ESA BIC Barcelona), and Alberto García-Rigo (IEEC), highlighted the high level of the proposals, making the selection of winning projects difficult.

Winning teams were recognized with various prizes, including a 1,500 euro cash award, as well as tickets for reference events like Smart City Expo and 4YFN at the Mobile World Congress. Furthermore, companies Indra and Airbus offered all hackathon participants the chance to visit their facilities and learn about their aerospace projects.

Finally, the winning project was Blue Pixel, a solution based on Sentinel-2 satellite data for water quality monitoring, capable of detecting indicators such as turbidity, chlorophyll, or the presence of algae.

Among the other highlighted projects, solutions were presented to predict flash droughts with artificial intelligence, detect pollution in rivers and seas, or develop real-time flood warning systems, demonstrating the great potential of space technologies applied to sustainable water management.