The Climate Detectives project invites students to work in teams to investigate, learn about, and protect our planet Earth. In this project, organized by the European Space Agency (ESA) and coordinated in France by CNES, students will discover the causes and impacts of climate change and develop scientific and technical skills through research, data collection, and the use of ground and space data. Investigators will be asked to identify a local problem, study it using real satellite images and/or their own field measurements, and finally propose actions to adapt, help reduce, or monitor this problem. Join us and help us make a difference in protecting Earth’s climate!
ProjetClimate Detectives Advanced
TargetCycle 3, 4 and High School
PeriodSeptember 17, 2025 to April 6, 2026
Become true climate detectives by studying its causes and consequences through a complete research project!
Using the detective guide, put together your research team and identify a topic related to climate, the environment, or sustainable development. Preferably, choose a topic that affects you on a daily basis.
Then, submit the subject and issues related to your project on the ESA website as soon as possible so that CNES can assist you with your research.
Investigate using soil and spatial data and the resources available to you.
Submit the final version of your project on the ESA website for review and approval by specialists in the field.
You will receive a certificate of participation from ESA, and your project will be displayed alongside those of other European teams!
You will also have the opportunity to participate in various events organized by CNES and ESA, and you will be invited to attend the annual closing event organized by CNES.
A team will also be selected to participate in ESA’s Climate Detectives Summit at ESRIN in Italy.
Project timeline
Launch of the Climate Detectives project
Register your team(s) on the European Space Agency website to receive regular updates on the project, resources, training courses and tutorials, conferences, and space news.
Launch Webinar
To help you get your adventure as climate detectives off to the best start, CNES, through its ESERO France office, has organized an online meeting for teachers to discover the new Climate Detectives resources and discuss upcoming events during the school year.
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Meeting with the teams
To help you get the most out of your project, CNES invites you to take part in exchange sessions with experts in your field of research and discover resources and tools that will provide you with the best possible support for your project.
Online conference: “Light pollution as seen by satellites”
CNES proposed an online conference given by CNES engineer Marie-Odile Marché. This web conference focused on the use of satellites to study the evolution and impacts of light pollution. It will be available for replay by following this link.
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Challenge: “The Earth seen by satellites”
Discover how satellites help us better understand how our planet and its climate work. From January 5 to 30, 2026, the Climate Detectives challenge “The Earth seen by satellites” invites you to develop your knowledge of satellites and Earth observation. To do so, complete one or more Climate Detectives activities and submit your results in the form of a scientific poster.
Team selection for the CD Summit
The ESERO France team will select, from among the interested teams, the one that will have the opportunity to represent France at the Climate Detectives Summit to be held at ESA’s ESRIN center in Italy in May 2026.
Submission deadline
To confirm your participation in the project, please ensure that you have submitted your final research project to the ESA website before this date.
National closing event
To celebrate the end of the year and congratulate you on your participation in the project, come and take part in our annual closing event in Toulouse, featuring talks by CNES experts and activities related to climate and satellites. You can register today by filling out this form.
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Climate Detectives Summit
Come and present your research project alongside other European detectives at the Climate Detectives Summit, organized by ESA at the ESA ESRIN center in Italy. A unique opportunity to meet ESA experts at a true scientific conference.
Climate Detectives Summit
Every year in May, the ESA Education team organizes a major European summit bringing together climate detectives representing the various countries participating in the Climate Detectives project. This event takes place at ESA’s Earth Observation Center (ESRIN) in Frascati, Italy. During these two and a half days, the young participants have the opportunity to talk to ESA experts, take part in debates, and visit the ESA ESRIN center.
Last year, students from Paul Esquinance Middle School in La Réole had the opportunity to represent France at the Climate Detectives Summit. The students presented a poster of their project, which aimed to study the impact of climate change on Bordeaux vineyards, to 85 students from 19 different European countries and to ESA experts.
In April 2026, the ESERO France team will select one team from among those interested in participating in this event. The selected team may send only five students aged 12 to 18, accompanied by one or two supervisors. ESA will cover accommodation, meals, local transportation costs, and travel expenses up to a limit of €300 per person.
Educational resources
Many resources are available on the ESERO France website to provide you with the best possible support for your project.
- Download resources and activities dedicated to the Climate Detectives project.
- Download the Climate Detectives guideline here.
- Find our training sessions to help you prepare your project.
- Find online conferences organized by CNES on the topics of Earth observation from space et light pollution as seen by satellites.
- Find the tools available to help you with your project.
- Find projects from previous years on the Climate Detectives website.
The ESERO France team is available to support you throughout this project. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at esero.france@cnes.fr.
We hope to see many of you again for this new season!
