The Urban Atlas is part of the implementation of the Global Monitoring of Environment and Security (GMES) service. Compiled from thousands of satellite photographs, the Urban Atlas provides detailed and cost-effective digital mapping. The Urban Atlas will enable urban planners and the public to assess risks and opportunities, ranging from threat of flooding and impact of climate change, and to identifying new infrastructure needs. All cities in the EU will be covered by the Urban Atlas by 2011. This map will provide for the first time homogeneous and up-to-date information on urban environments, allowing for a comparison of different cities all across Europe.