Active Fire

Firecast automatically retrieves active fire data from various sources to generate customized alerts every 30 minutes. NASA’s Land Atmosphere Near Real-time Capability for Earth Observing Systems (LANCE) processes thermal and mid-infrared data from the MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) instrument on board NASA’s Aqua and Terra satellites to generate a near real-time thermal anomaly product (Giglio et al., 2003). Due to their alternating flight paths, the Aqua and Terra satellites permit four fire observations in a 24-hour period. The MODIS thermal anomalies product indicates one or more active fires within a 1km² area on the ground. The NRT detections of active fires from the VIIRS (Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite) sensor are retrieved from LANCE as well. The VIIRS satellite provides two observations in a 24-hour period with a day-time over pass around 13:30. This afternoon overpass, similar to Aqua, coincides with the timing for peak fire activity in the tropics. The VIIRS active fire data provided by AFIS are an experimental data product with a spatial resolution of 375m2, thus potentially detecting smaller fires with higher geolocation accuracy (Schroeder et al., 2014). Near real-time delivery of active fire detections support activities such as active fire suppression, community education and outreach, and policing of illegal activities. Fire detection accuracy is contingent on a number of factors.

Fire Season Severity

The fire season severity forecasts are modeled from the empirical relationship between sea surface temperatures (SST) in the Atlantic and Pacific and fire incidences across South America (Chen et al. 2011). These forecasts indicate the expected intensity of fire activity due to climatic conditions during the upcoming 2013 dry season. Fire Season Severity Alerts for the upcoming dry season (typically July-October) are provided by NASA and updated monthly from November through June. Knowing the potential fire season severity in advance of the dry season is extremely useful for fire management and prevention, protected areas management, and sustainable land use planning. For more information about these forecasts please see NASA’s web pages.