Description

Satellite observations can be used to detect active fires as well as monitor the impacts of fires on air quality and ecosystems. Monitoring post-fire impacts to vegetation is essential for evaluating burn severity, which informs post-fire debris flow risk; understanding patterns in ecosystem recovery; and identifying areas that require restoration intervention. Wildfire smoke monitoring is also critical for air quality and public health applications, as exposure to fine particulate matter within smoke can cause respiratory issues and other health complications. 

Along with active fires, satellite sensors can detect static thermal anomalies (STA) from natural heat sources, such as volcanoes, or industrial heat sources such as mineral processing plants, gas flares, and waste incinerators. Multiple sources of satellite imagery and derived data products relevant to smoke, post-fire conditions, and STA identification are available within NASA's Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS). 

This two-part training led by NASA's Applied Remote Sensing Training (ARSET) program will introduce participants to several capabilities within FIRMS that were not included in the previous ARSET training, Introduction to NASA Earth Observations and Tools for Wildfire Monitoring and Management. Participants will learn how to use the FIRMS aerosol index indices, burned area products, post-fire indices and imagery, static thermal anomaly information, and how to use Jupyter Notebooks to ingest and visualize active fire detection data.

Prerequisites

• Introduction to NASA Earth Observations and Tools for Wildfire Monitoring and Management
  • Parts 1, 2, & 3
• Spectral Indices for Land and Aquatic Applications

Objectives

By the end of this training attendees will be able to:

• Access relevant post-fire imagery in the FIRMS Burned Area Mode to assess burned area, burn severity, and other factors for an event of interest.
• Identify and track wildfire smoke over time using Corrected Reflectance, OMPS Aerosol Index, and PyroCB layers available in the FIRMS Smoke/Aerosols Mode. Understand when to use the PyroCb layer.
• Use relevant data in FIRMS to identify STA associated with industrial or natural sources that are not vegetation fires.
• Use Jupyter Notebooks to access and visualize FIRMS data for different case studies.

Audience

• Federal, state agency, local government representatives, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and representatives from academia who are interested in exploring a range of advanced capabilities available in FIRMS to support the identification, monitoring, and management of wildfires and their impacts.
• Academia and research organizations interested in understanding NASA data products and tools provided in FIRMS and considerations for their use for science applications.

Course Format

• Online instructor-led
• Two 1-hour parts
• An identical session will be offered for each part at two different times of day (Session A: 11 a.m.-12 p.m. EST; Session B: 3-4 p.m. EST)
• A certificate of completion will be offered to those who attend both parts of the training and complete the homework by the due date.

Sessions

Part 1: Post-Fire Imagery and Smoke Monitoring

• Introduction
• Use of FIRMS to Inform Post-Fire Assessments
• Exploring the Smoke and Aerosols Mode of FIRMS
• Summary
• Q&A Session

ARSET Trainers: Melanie Follette-Cook

Guest Instructors: Jenny Hewson, Diane Davies

Part 2: Data Analysis and Visualization

• Introduction
• Jupyter Notebooks
• Static Thermal Anomalies (STA)
• Summary
• Q&A Session

ARSET Trainers: Melanie Follette-Cook

Guest Instructors: Dylan Mendes, Brad Quayle