• Science

This NASA Technology Will Help Fight Wildfires from Space

2 minute read

Wildfires strike suddenly and unexpectedly, destroying homes, taking lives and costing billions of dollars every year. Now, scientists say that new satellite technology developed by NASA will help predict where fires will strike next.

The system, known as FireSat, uses infrared sensors to identify wildfires when they have grown to be at least 35 to 50 feet wide, according to a NASA press release. That area may sound large, but it pales in comparison to the size of wildfires that can destroy millions of acres. Detection by the system occurs within 15 minutes of the beginning of a fire.

“Delays in detection can lead to rapid escalation of a fire, and dramatic growth of the cost of suppression,” Robert Staehle, lead designer of FireSat at JPL, said in a press release. “The system we envision will work day and night for fires anywhere in the world.”

Read More: This Technology Could Help Predict Where Wildfires Strike Next

NASA has used satellites to track wildfires for years, but the new system marks a vast improvement in imaging capability. Existing satellite technology can transmit fire images a few times a day. The new technology, developed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), transmits an image once a minute, according to the press release. JPL hopes it will be fully operational by 2018.

Learning about a fire exactly when it starts can make a dramatic difference in preventing its rapid expansion. The 2014 King Fire, for instance, spread across California forest land 10 miles in one afternoon. It would eventually burn nearly 100,000 acres of land.

FireSat is far from the only technology in the works that helps predict wildfires. Another NASA-funded project incorporates weather and topography information, among other things, to determine how a wildfire is likely to spread across a given area.

See 25 Incredible Images of Earth From Space

Alberta, Canada, Oct. 10, 2014.
Alberta, Canada, Oct. 10, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Kiev, Ukraine, Feb. 24, 2014.
Kiev, Ukraine, Feb. 24, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Itaipu Dam, Paraguay, March 12, 2014.
Itaipu Dam, Paraguay, March 12, 2014.DigitalGlobe
San Diego County, Calif., May 15, 2014.
San Diego County, Calif., May 15, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Maschen, Germany, Aug. 6, 2014.
Maschen, Germany, Aug. 6, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Spui Locks at IJmuiden, Netherlands, Aug. 27, 2014.
Spui Locks at IJmuiden, Netherlands, Aug. 27, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Mount Sinabung, Indonesia, Jan. 23, 2014.
Mount Sinabung, Indonesia, Jan. 23, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Everett, Washington, July 26, 2014.
Everett, Washington, July 26, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Garden City, Georgia, May 16, 2014.
Garden City, Georgia, May 16, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Kobani, Syria, Nov. 6, 2014.
Kobani, Syria, Nov. 6, 2014.DigitalGlobe
World’s largest tire graveyard in Sulaibiya, Kuwait, June 4, 2014.
World’s largest tire graveyard in Sulaibiya, Kuwait, June 4, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Sinjar, Iraq, Sept. 15, 2014.
Sinjar, Iraq, Sept. 15, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Huayuanli, China, Oct. 18, 2014.
Huayuanli, China, Oct. 18, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Nordenskjold Basin, Antarctica, March 12, 2014.
Nordenskjold Basin, Antarctica, March 12, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Oktoberfest, Munich, Germany, Sept. 24, 2014.
Oktoberfest, Munich, Germany, Sept. 24, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Mexico City, Mexico, Aug. 1, 2014.
Mexico City, Mexico, Aug. 1, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Glastonbury Festival, Pilton, Somerset, England, June 25, 2014.
Glastonbury Festival, Pilton, Somerset, England, June 25, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Bayan Obo Mining District, China, Aug. 23, 2014.
Bayan Obo Mining District, China, Aug. 23, 2014.DigitalGlobe
The Diavikk Diamond Mine, Canada, Aug. 21, 2014.
The Diavikk Diamond Mine, Canada, Aug. 21, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Cuprite Hill, Nevada, Sept. 19, 2014.
Cuprite Hill, Nevada, Sept. 19, 2014. (Spectral-rich imagery, like this, reveals what's below the surface)DigitalGlobe
Rainbow Range, British Columbia, Canada, Sept. 20, 2014.
Rainbow Range, British Columbia, Canada, Sept. 20, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Henan Coal Mine, China, May 29, 2014.
Henan Coal Mine, China, May 29, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Prirazlomnaya Oil Platform, Russia, June 28, 2014.
Prirazlomnaya Oil Platform, Russia, June 28, 2014.DigitalGlobe
Caspian Sea, Kazakhstan, Sept., 2014.
Caspian Sea, Kazakhstan, Sept., 2014.DigitalGlobe
Gunja, Croatia, May 21, 2014.
Gunja, Croatia, May 21, 2014.DigitalGlobe

 

 

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Write to Justin Worland at justin.worland@time.com