Photo credit: www.nasa.gov
Recently, the AVIRIS-3 sensor was employed to create swift and detailed fire maps, aiding firefighters in Alabama to control wildfire spread and protect structures.
A recent advancement in wildfire management was achieved with NASA’s AVIRIS-3, or Airborne Visible Infrared Imaging Spectrometer 3, which provided vital real-time data to assist firefighters in Alabama. On March 19, this sensor identified a 120-acre wildfire that had not yet been reported to local authorities.
The AVIRIS-3 operated from a King Air B200 aircraft at an altitude of approximately 9,000 feet (3,000 meters) over the blaze, located about 3 miles (5 kilometers) east of Castleberry, Alabama. While in flight, a scientist analyzed the incoming data to determine the areas of the fire that were burning the most intensely. This crucial information was transmitted via satellite internet to ground-based fire officials, enabling them to relay real-time updates and perimeter images directly to firefighters in the field.
The entire detection and alerting process spanned only a few minutes. This expedited response allowed firefighters to accurately assess the fire’s location, size, and boundaries, equipping them with the necessary intelligence to strategize their response and deploy personnel and equipment effectively.
“This is very agile science,” remarked Robert Green, the principal investigator for the AVIRIS program and a senior research scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. He highlighted AVIRIS-3’s capacity to map areas affected by previous fires, such as the burn scar from the Eaton Fire in January.
AVIRIS-3 participated in several test flights as part of the NASA 2025 FireSense Airborne Campaign, spanning Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, and Texas. In preparation for prescribed burns in Alabama’s Geneva State Forest and at Fort Stewart-Hunter Army Airfield in Georgia, the research flights provided detailed mapping of at least 13 wildfires and prescribed burns, alongside numerous small hot spots, all captured in real time during the latter part of March.
Typically, data from imaging spectrometers like AVIRIS-3 takes considerable time—days or weeks—to be transformed into comprehensive image products for research. However, innovations in calibration algorithms enabled the team to process data aboard the aircraft rapidly. The use of airborne satellite internet facilitated immediate distribution of the imagery while the plane was still in the air.
The AVIRIS team had previously generated real-time products during a February campaign in Panama and Costa Rica, and they have since refined the techniques, integrating automation into the mapping process during flights.
AVIRIS-3 is a part of a lineage of imaging spectrometers developed at JPL since 1986, employed across various scientific fields, including wildfire studies, by analyzing how sunlight is reflected from the Earth’s surface.
During their March flights, researchers produced three distinct types of maps. The Fire Quicklook combines measurements from three infrared wavelengths to depict the relative intensity of burning areas. On this map, cooler-burning regions appear in orange and red, intense flames are marked in yellow, while previously burned sections show dark red or brown.
Another map, the Fire 2400 nm Quicklook, focuses solely on infrared light at a wavelength of 2,400 nanometers, effectively highlighting hot spots and fire perimeters against a bright red background. The third map, simply known as Quicklook, provides visuals of burned areas alongside smoke.
Among fire crews, the Fire 2400 nm Quicklook emerged as the preferred choice, according to Ethan Barrett, a fire analyst with the Alabama Forestry Commission. This overview allowed firefighters to make informed decisions on where to allocate heavy machinery for creating fire breaks to curtail the blaze’s advance.
The utilization of AVIRIS-3 imagery to create digitized fire perimeters led to swift and informed situational understanding for the crews on the ground. For instance, in the case of the Castleberry Fire, having an accurate representation of intense burning zones allowed firefighters to focus their efforts on the northeastern edge of the fire.
Just two days later, the sensor detected a fire approximately 4 miles (2.5 kilometers) southwest of Perdido, Alabama. Fire officials monitored the situation closely and concluded that the main heat location was within the existing perimeter, prompting a strategic reallocation of resources to address other fires situated 25 miles (40 kilometers) away near Mount Vernon, Alabama.
During the response to one of the fires near Mount Vernon, crews utilized AVIRIS-3 maps to identify optimal locations for firebreaks, successfully containing the fire within 100 feet (30 meters) of four nearby structures.
“Fire moves a lot faster than a bulldozer, so we have to try to get around it before it overtakes us. These maps show us the hot spots,” Barrett stated. “When I step out of the truck, I can quickly pinpoint the perimeter. That gives us a significant advantage.”
The AVIRIS system and the FireSense Airborne Campaign exemplify NASA’s commitment to leveraging its technological expertise in the fight against wildfires using innovative airborne solutions. Additionally, the agency has introduced a prototype for its Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations project, aimed at ensuring reliable airspace management for drones and other aerial vehicles engaged in wildfire response.
Source
www.nasa.gov