Horseshoe Two fire captured by Landsat 5 on June 15, 2011. Credit: NASA/USGS
Wallow fire as viewed by Landsat 5 on June 15, 2011. Credit: NASA/USGS
Satellite images are helping emergency managers fight the largest fire in Arizona history.
For example, the Landsat 5 satellite has captured images of the raging fires. Landsat is a joint effort of both NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
Both emergency managers and responders are using satellite data from a variety of instruments to plan both immediate firefighting containment strategies and mitigation efforts once the fires are out.
The Landsat 5 satellite captured images of two Arizona fires, dubbed Wallow and Horseshoe Two, burning in eastern Arizona.
Both images are false-colored to allow ease of identification of various objects that will help firefighters and emergency managers. In the images burn scars appear in red and ongoing fire in bright red. Vegetation is colored green, smoke is colored blue and bare ground is tan-colored.
To assist emergency managers, Landsat satellites combine a wide-area perspective with a thermal sensor that detects the actual fire perimeter through the smoke and haze.
Landsat imagery provides critical vegetation and fuels information for the interagency Wildland Fire Decision Support System which is used to model fire behavior and make tactical decisions.
By Leonard David