Catastrophic Forest Fires in Caramulo Mountains

• Chapter III: Fire Detection and Monitoring
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• Introduction
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• Night Microphysics RGB
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• RGB HRV from MSG/SEVIRI
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• Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)
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• FRP-PIXEL product

Introduction

MSG/SEVIRI satellites have several channels suited to the remote detection of forest fires. The IR 3.9 µm channel is widely used for fire detection and fire products due to its responsivity to temperature and sub-pixel response (for further details see http://www.eumetrain.org/resources/forest_fires.html). On the other hand, visible images are adequate for detecting smoke. Several RGB composites are also suitable for detecting hot spots. When using geostationary satellites such as MSG, the high temporal resolution is useful in monitoring the fire's life cycle. Conversely, polar-orbiting satellite images such as those provided by MODIS or AVHRR sensors allow an easier detection of hot spots and smoke plumes due to the higher spatial resolution. However, their low sampling frequency makes these satellites unsuitable for following the life cycle of detected fires. The Caramulo fires were suited to studying the strengths and drawbacks of different remote sensing techniques in fire monitoring.