Sightline

Geospatial infrastructure intelligence platform for discovering and analyzing physical-world assets using OpenStreetMap data.

Overview

Sightline enables searching, monitoring, and analyzing real-world infrastructure including:

• Telecommunications towers and data centers
• Power plants, substations, and energy storage
• Airports, helipads, and cable transport (gondolas, funiculars)
• Ports, harbours, piers, and maritime facilities
• Warehouses and industrial facilities
• Pipelines, refineries, and energy infrastructure
• Military installations
• Hospitals, prisons, embassies, and government facilities
• Surveillance cameras and emergency infrastructure
• Transportation hubs (train stations, bus stations, taxi stands)

And many more asset types across 30+ categories with over 200 searchable infrastructure types.

Architecture

flowchart TB
    classDef frontend fill:#6366f1,stroke:#4338ca,color:#fff
    classDef backend fill:#0ea5e9,stroke:#0284c7,color:#fff
    classDef external fill:#f59e0b,stroke:#d97706,color:#fff

    subgraph FE["Frontend"]
        SearchBar["SearchBar"]
        Filters["Filters"]
        ResultList["ResultList"]
        MapView["MapView — Leaflet.js"]
    end

    subgraph BE["Backend"]
        route["route.ts — Request Handler"]
        parser["parser.ts — NLP Engine"]
        geo["geo.ts — Geocoding"]
        overpass["overpass.ts — OSM Query Builder"]
        cache["cache.ts — Cache Layer"]
    end

    subgraph EX["External APIs"]
        Nominatim["Nominatim — Geocoding API"]
        OverpassAPI["Overpass API — OSM Data"]
    end

    SearchBar & Filters & ResultList & MapView -->|"POST /api/search"| route

    route -->|"parse query"| parser
    route -->|"resolve location"| geo
    route -->|"fetch POIs"| overpass
    route <-->|"read / write"| cache

    geo -->|"geocode"| Nominatim
    overpass -->|"QL query"| OverpassAPI

    class SearchBar,Filters,ResultList,MapView frontend
    class route,parser,geo,overpass,cache backend
    class Nominatim,OverpassAPI external

Data Sources

OpenStreetMap

All infrastructure data comes from OpenStreetMap, a collaborative mapping project. OSM data is crowd-sourced and may contain inaccuracies or gaps.

Nominatim

Geographic resolution uses the Nominatim geocoding service to convert place names to bounding boxes and coordinates.

Overpass API

Infrastructure queries execute against the Overpass API, which provides read-only access to OSM data.

Query Syntax

Natural Language

telecom towers in karnataka
power plants near mumbai
data centers in california
airports in germany

Structured Queries

type:telecom operator:airtel region:karnataka
type:data_center operator:google
type:substation region:texas
type:airport country:france

Supported Parameters

| Parameter | Description | Example | |-----------|-------------|---------| | type: | Asset type | type:power_plant | | operator: | Operator/owner | operator:google | | region: | State/region | region:bavaria | | country: | Country | country:india | | near: | Proximity search | near:london | | radius: | Search radius (km) | radius:100 |

Supported Asset Types

Energy & Power

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | power_plant | powerplant | Power generation facilities | | substation | - | Electrical substations | | transformer | - | Power transformers | | converter | - | Power converters | | switch | - | Power switches | | power_line | - | High voltage power lines | | power_pole | - | Power distribution poles | | solar | - | Solar farms and panels | | wind | - | Wind farms and turbines | | nuclear | nuclear_site | Nuclear power plants | | hydroelectric | - | Hydroelectric plants | | geothermal | - | Geothermal plants | | coal | - | Coal power plants | | gas_power | - | Gas power plants | | oil_power | - | Oil power plants | | biogas | - | Biogas plants | | biomass | - | Biomass plants | | tidal | - | Tidal power plants | | battery_storage | - | Battery energy storage |

Telecommunications

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | telecom | tower | Telecom towers | | antenna | - | Antennas | | mast | - | Communication masts | | cell_tower | - | Mobile cell towers | | radio_tower | - | Radio transmission towers | | broadcast_tower | - | TV/Radio broadcast towers | | satellite_dish | - | Satellite dishes | | telephone_exchange | - | Telephone exchanges | | data_center | datacenter | Data centers |

Oil, Gas & Mining

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | refinery | - | Oil refineries | | pipeline | - | Pipelines | | oil_well | - | Oil extraction wells | | gas_well | - | Gas extraction wells | | storage_tank | - | Fuel/liquid storage tanks | | silo | - | Storage silos | | gasometer | - | Gas storage tanks | | quarry | mine | Quarries and mines | | landfill | - | Landfill sites | | scrap_yard | - | Scrap yards |

Water & Utilities

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | water_tower | - | Water towers | | water_treatment | - | Water treatment plants | | wastewater | sewage, sewage_plant | Wastewater plants | | dam | - | Dams | | reservoir | - | Reservoirs | | pumping_station | - | Water pumping stations | | water_well | - | Water wells |

Aviation

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | airport | - | Airports | | helipad | - | Helipads | | airfield | - | Military/private airfields | | runway | - | Airport runways | | taxiway | - | Airport taxiways | | terminal | - | Airport terminals | | hangar | - | Aircraft hangars | | atc_tower | - | Air traffic control towers |

Maritime

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | port | seaport | Ports and seaports | | harbour | - | Harbours | | ferry_terminal | - | Ferry terminals | | marina | - | Marinas | | shipyard | - | Shipyards | | dock | - | Docks | | lighthouse | - | Lighthouses | | pier | - | Piers | | jetty | - | Jetties | | slipway | - | Boat slipways | | mooring | - | Moorings | | boat_lift | - | Boat lifts |

Rail & Transit

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | train_station | - | Train stations | | railyard | rail_yard | Rail yards | | metro | - | Metro/subway stations | | tram_stop | - | Tram stops | | halt | - | Railway halts | | level_crossing | - | Level crossings | | bus_station | - | Bus stations | | parking | - | Parking facilities | | toll_booth | - | Toll booths | | weigh_station | - | Truck weigh stations | | rest_area | - | Highway rest areas | | service_area | - | Highway service areas |

Structures

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | building | - | General buildings | | bridge | - | Bridges | | tunnel | - | Tunnels | | cooling_tower | - | Cooling towers | | chimney | - | Industrial chimneys | | crane | - | Cranes | | windmill | - | Windmills | | watermill | - | Watermills | | clock_tower | - | Clock towers | | bell_tower | - | Bell towers |

Industrial & Commercial

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | warehouse | - | Warehouses | | factory | - | Factories | | industrial | - | Industrial zones | | works | - | Industrial works | | depot | - | Depots | | brewery | - | Breweries | | distillery | - | Distilleries | | sawmill | - | Sawmills | | slaughterhouse | - | Slaughterhouses | | recycling_plant | recycling | Recycling plants |

Military & Defense

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | military | - | Military installations | | bunker | - | Bunkers | | barracks | - | Military barracks | | naval_base | - | Naval bases | | range | - | Firing/shooting ranges | | checkpoint | - | Military checkpoints | | radar | - | Radar installations |

Government & Public Safety

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | embassy | - | Embassies | | courthouse | - | Courthouses | | townhall | - | Town halls | | government | - | Government offices | | customs | - | Customs offices | | tax_office | - | Tax offices | | border_control | - | Border control points | | police | - | Police stations | | fire_station | - | Fire stations | | prison | - | Prisons | | ambulance_station | - | Ambulance stations | | rescue_station | - | Rescue stations | | coast_guard | - | Coast guard stations | | emergency_phone | - | Emergency phones | | fire_hydrant | - | Fire hydrants | | lifeguard | - | Lifeguard stations | | surveillance_camera | cctv | Surveillance cameras |

Education & Research

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | school | - | Schools | | university | - | Universities | | college | - | Colleges | | kindergarten | - | Kindergartens | | driving_school | - | Driving schools | | research | - | Research institutes | | library | - | Libraries |

Healthcare

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | hospital | - | Hospitals | | clinic | - | Clinics | | pharmacy | - | Pharmacies | | dentist | - | Dental practices | | veterinary | - | Veterinary clinics | | nursing_home | - | Nursing homes | | hospice | - | Hospices | | blood_bank | - | Blood banks |

Culture & Entertainment

| Type | Aliases | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | museum | - | Museums | | theatre | - | Theatres | | cinema | - | Cinemas | | stadium | - | Stadiums | | `sport