Location Location Location

Even though I have been living in London for a number of years now, I still can’t find my way around without using apps on my phone like Google Maps or Citymapper. And before I had those I would invariably be late!

Location has become a key component for many mobile applications enabled by platforms like Android and iOS that offer a simple interface to get the device’s current location. This, as well as ensuring you have no excuses for being late, has turned your phone into an interactive map, run tracker, sat nav and more.

Inmarsat satellite terminals gather location data, and we identified the opportunity to make it much easier to build location aware applications and services for customers connected to our networks.

By providing a simple RESTful web API for developers it will be easy to obtain location information for one or more terminals connected to our networks. Whilst obtaining the location coordinates for a ship, plane or connected lorry can currently require accessing the data through a complex interface, developers will now be able to access the data from anywhere through a single web API.

We are excited to be able to offer developers this location data however we also want to push the boundaries further to see what they can do with it, which is why we are hosting the first Geo Hack Day in London on 5 September.

A Hack Day is an event in which software developers and designers collaborate intensively on software and hardware projects. These events tend to have a specific focus which might be around a particular theme, in this case GIS and Location, and have a short timespan such as 12 or 24 hours.

We are inviting developers to build innovative new solutions using a range of data sources along with location mapping and GIS tools. We will be providing developers at the Geo Hack Day with a sample of anonymised data and challenging them to see what applications they can build.

A project that shows the kind of thing we are hoping to see at Geo Hack Day is Come Fly With Me. Built at the Space Apps Challenge hosted in the Inmarsat Conference Centre in London, this is a great example of the type of service airlines can offer customers to enhance their experience.

The web app (built in just 24 hours) enables you to enter the flight code for a plane that is currently in the sky, and shows you satellite imagery and weather simulation as if you were looking out of that plane’s window.

If you are a developer or have a great geo themed idea then join us at Geo Hack Day by registering now www.geohackdays.com. We look forward to seeing what you create.