Earth-observation devices on satellites and aircraft are mapping current fires, providing data products to agencies on the ground that respond to emergencies.
As California experiences one of the worst forest fires on record, NASA is leveraging its resources to help. Scientists supporting the agency’s Applied Sciences Disaster Program in the Department of Earth Sciences are producing maps and other data products that track active fires and their smoke and also identify places that may be vulnerable to future hazards.
“When such disasters occur, we can quickly respond to our partners’ image and mapping data needs,” said David Green, Disaster Program Manager at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Similarly, after a fire incident, our researchers will use orbital and aerial data from burned areas to help eliminate hazards such as landslides and mud-stones.”
Most of the data comes from numerous satellite instruments passing through the state, such as the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectro Radiometer (MODIS) equipment in the Aqua and Terra satellites, the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer in the Suomi-NPP satellite. , And a cloud-aerosol leader with an orthogonal polarization (CLIOP) instrument on a Calypso satellite.
Another instrument of this type is the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTR) equipped in Tera Satellite. Operated by Japan Space Systems and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, Aster looks at the Earth’s surface with visible, near-infrared and thermal-infrared wavelengths, identifying and mapping features such as fire smoke and heat. Such orbital data help fire agencies better locate fire and direct crews there.
A multi-angle imaging spectro radiometer (MISR), another JPL-powered instrument mounted on Tera, is used to understand how high and far the smoke particles travel. MISR data was also used to detect the amount and type of smoke particles in a smoking area using the MISR Research Aerosol Retrieval Algorithm developed by researchers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
Smoke plumes generated by California fires have traveled the vast expanses of western North America in recent weeks, affecting air quality and visibility. Smoke particles in the air when inhaled can increase the risk of cardiovascular and respiratory disease, so tracking their spread provides valuable information for local public health officials.
Researchers from NASA JPL and GSFC assisted in the analysis of satellite data, and NASA’s Disaster Program and NASA Health and Air Quality Applied Science teams coordinated directly with California National Guard stakeholders to detect the impact of the fire.
In addition to these satellite-based efforts, JPL’s Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) equipment will be launched this week on the River and Carmel Fire in Monterey County, CZU Lightning Complex in San Mateo and Santa Cruz Counties. Lightning complexes in Sonoma, Napa, Solano and Lake County have caught fire.
The UAVSAR device is attached to the underside of a C-20A aircraft located at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center near Palmdale, California. When flying frequently over a specific area, the instrument can measure small changes in the ground surface with great accuracy. Scientists use maps of ground elevation and data to study surface-mass movement (for example, with seismic faults).
But UNVSARN can also be very effective in mapping burn scars. The instrument’s radar signals the plant to bounce differently from the bare, freshly burned ground. It is important to accurately measure the extent of a burn stain to evaluate the long-term effects of fire damage. The area is prone to mudslides during rain storms due to damage to vegetation on the mountain.
In combination with other science instruments, the findings of these UAVSAR flyovers can help characterize the spread of active fires while allowing a better understanding of their long-term effects. Additional imaging cameras with UAVSAR will be flown to give a detailed understanding of the fire.
“Looking in the same direction as the UAVSAR, we will also fly our short-wavelength infrared imager, which will see smoke and fire,” said Andrea Donnelly, JPL’s chief research scientist. “These combined data can help us better understand how this active fire is affecting the area.”
Data products are developed for agencies working on the ground in California, including the California National Guard, the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire), the Governor of Emergency Fees Emergency Services, the California Geological Survey and the Federal Emergency Management.
News Media Contact
Ian J. O’Neill / Jane J. Lee
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-354-2649 / 818-354-0307
[email protected] / [email protected]
2020-169
