Introduction to Geolocation, Satellite Imagery Techniques & Chronolocation

Twelve hour online training
23-25 November 2026, 9 am – 1 pm EST New York time/ 3 -7 pm CET Amsterdam time
Price: EUR 1,050

Would you like to learn how Bellingcat investigations are done? Would you like to know how to geolocate footage showing Shahed-136 type kamikaze drones; chronolocate shadows to prove time of day of an airstrike, find out the full scale damage caused by natural disasters or the impact of an oil spill?

If the answer to those two questions is ‘yes’, this workshop is for you.

Bellingcat’s 12h introductory webinar offers you immersion in skills and techniques underlying open source research. You will gain a basic understanding of satellite imagery use for investigations, geolocation and chronolocation skills and techniques. During the webinar, our researchers step away from their own investigations and share their knowledge, wisdom and advice with you.

What you will learn:

This webinar is split into 3 parts focusing on introduction to geolocation, maps and satellite services and chronolocation and will cover:

Part 1 Practical Geolocation

The ‘hows’ and ‘whys’ of geolocation, with a particular focus on how both basic and more advanced geolocation techniques can play a central, practical role in research and investigation processes.
Basic geolocation techniques, with interactive examples and exercises from across a number of different topic areas (e.g., human rights and conflict; hate and harms; alleged criminal activity), and then discuss
How geolocation can be used in research and investigation processes, particularly in topics where it remains under-utilized as a research technique

Part 2 Introduction to Maps and Satellite Services

How to use satellite imagery for research, how to use Google Maps and Street View, how to use Google Earth as a geospatial notebook
Introduction to Copernicus Browser and how/when it can be useful
Alternate satellite imagery sources and mapping services
Country-specific options for maps and satellite imagery, alternate streetview providers and the limitations/advantages of using them
Resources for monitoring conflicts or getting a better understanding of dynamic environments when an in-person investigation isn’t an option
Tips on what to do when mapping services or satellite imagery is insufficient for the location you’re looking at

Part 3 Chronolocation

The hows and whys of chronolocation, with a particular focus on how both basic and more advanced techniques
Basic chronolocation techniques with interactive examples and exercises
How to use chronolocation in open source research

Experience level:

This webinar is meant for researchers with a novice-to-intermediate familiarity with geolocation, maps and satellites and chronolocation, people who have a basic understanding of what open source investigations are but do not necessarily have to have research experience in any of the training topics.

Logistics:

The webinar will be led by experienced Bellingcat researchers who will guide you through the material. They have extensive open source research experience and are passionate about sharing their knowledge with you.

Zoom webinar joining details will be shared with participants in the week before the training.

Too basic for you:

In case you think you’re not ready or too experienced to join this webinar, please check our website for upcoming training better matching your needs.

Cancellation

Please look closely at the cancellation and event policies in Eventzilla before you take the leap.

FAQs

Why Bellingcat?

Bellingcat is a global collective that has uncovered facts to hold power to account — we share everything, including our methods, because truth belongs to everyone.

Bellingcat began by analyzing footage of chemical weapons attacks in the Syrian civil war back in 2014. In recent years we have worked on covering various topics from civilian harm in Ukraine, through wildlife trafficking in South East Asia, the recruitment of child soldiers in Africa to the luxurious life of Kinahan cartel leaders living openly in Dubai despite an international manhunt.

We turn that same curiosity into a teachable research skill. Combined with practical knowledge of techniques and tools, that’s what this workshop teaches you to do.

How do you screen participants?

We manually approve all applications after registration. We do basic due diligence checks on our participants to be sure that our trainers and all other participants are comfortable with their participation. Members of any police, military or intelligence service are not permitted registration at our workshops, and we allow government employees to join on a case-by-case basis.

Bellingcat reserves the right not to disclose the reasons for declining participation.

That said, the vast majority of participants are approved without any issue.

Who usually attends your workshops?

We have a pretty interesting mix of participants at our trainings. Between a third to a half come from private companies or the corporate world. Among those, we have plenty of information security researchers, corporate security investigators, lawyers, due diligence experts, and other professions. Journalists are the next-most popular profession for our workshops, and then we have a mix of human rights/NGO researchers, academics and students, and even retirees just curious about what this whole OSINT thing is all about.

Can I get an invoice?

In case you need an invoice, please send us an email to [email protected].

Can I receive a certificate for the workshops?

Sure! Just email us ([email protected]) after the workshops, and we’ll send you a PDF certificate.

Can I receive a recording of a workshop?

We do not record our workshops, or allow others to record them. However, we do provide copies of our training slides to participants after the completion of the training for their personal reference.

Can I gift a workshop seat to someone else?

Sure! We have had quite a few people buy workshop attendance for a loved one as a birthday or Christmas gift. Just let us know the name of the person who you are buying the seat for when registration so that we can do a basic due diligence check on them (see the Screening section up above). Feel free to email us at [email protected] to make sure we have their proper contact details so they get all of the invitation information on time.