There are dozens of websites that NASA uses to host its remote-sensing data and tools (more than 50, we kid you not!). So, for someone not too familiar with the geospatial industry, making sense of all this information or even figuring out which asset can be located where could be an overwhelming exercise. Not surprisingly, NASA has not been able to make startups or other small businesses tap into its full commercialization potential, even though these companies could benefit greatly from access to free and open remote-sensing data.

But now, the status quo is set to be altered with the latest offering from NASA’s Technology Transfer program. Called the Remote Sensing Toolkit, this online resource combines satellite data, the tools you require to analyze that data, and the code you need to create your own remote sensing tools – all in one place!

The portal gives you a choice between near real-time or archived data, pulling information from the AIRS, AMSR2, MISR, MLS, MODIS, MOPITT, OMI and VIIRS instruments and other Earth Science data holdings. NASA is giving you ready tools to work with each category of data or you can build your own custom tools for data management, data analysis, data visualization, etc.

NASA’s vision for this portal is that it ignites innovation in the entrepreneurial community and leads to the creation of more commercial products that use satellite data. According to NASA Earth Science Division’s Kevin Murphy, “Over the years, many organizations around the world have found innovative ways to turn NASA satellite data into beneficial information products here on Earth. Remote Sensing Toolkit will help grow the number of users who put NASA’s free and open data archive to work for people.”

You can check out the Remote Sensing Toolkit by clicking here.