The Golden Twins: Mapping the Limassol Wildfire in Cyprus with GTFire
The July 2025 wildfire in Limassol, Cyprus, was analysed through GTFire, an advanced wildfire monitoring tool developed within The Golden Twins project. GTFire uses satellite data, remote sensing technologies, and predictive models to support the monitoring, mapping, and assessment of forest fire events.
For the Limassol wildfire, the affected area was initially defined as an extended 240 km² polygon by the Forest Management and Remote Sensing Laboratory of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (FMRS AUTh). Following this, the satellite acquisitions team of GEOSYSTEMS HELLAS S.A. (GSH) proceeded with a new satellite image tasking request for a WorldView Ortho-ready Bundle product with 30 cm spatial resolution, in collaboration with GEOSERVE NL.
The satellite image was successfully tasked on 27 July 2025 and delivered early in the morning of 28 July 2025. This rapid delivery enabled the teams of FMRS AUTh, GEOSYSTEMS HELLAS, and the ERATOSTHENES Centre of Excellence (ECoE) to immediately proceed with data analysis using the GTFire tool.
Based on the analysis of very high-resolution satellite imagery, the burned area was estimated at approximately 104 km². The results demonstrate the value of Earth Observation and geospatial intelligence in supporting wildfire assessment, rapid response, and post-fire monitoring.
The Golden Twins project promotes “Investing in Industrial Innovation” and is implemented as a co-funded Public-Private Partnership, coordinated by GEOSYSTEMS HELLAS S.A. The consortium includes the Forest Management and Remote Sensing Laboratory of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (FMRS AUTh), the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), and Emtech.
The project is implemented under the ESA Φ-lab InCubed programme, supporting the development of innovative Earth Observation solutions for wildfire monitoring, flood mapping, maritime awareness, and resilience planning.
Learn more about The Golden Twins here:
https://thegoldentwins.eu/