New NOAA Satellite Tools for Wildland Fire Management

The increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires is a significant challenge. While the wildland fire management community has long used satellites to monitor active fires and the fire environment, further exploitation is needed to address present-day needs. The NOAA National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) Wildland Fire Program was established in late 2022 to improve operational satellite product service delivery for critical wildland fire use cases. With support from the Disaster Relief Supplemental Appropriations and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the NESDIS Wildland Fire Program has made substantial progress in developing and demonstrating new and improved satellite products via the Next Generation Fire System (NGFS). The NGFS includes cutting-edge methods for detecting, tracking, and characterizing fires from geostationary and low earth orbit satellites, such as the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-R) and the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS). The NGFS fire detection methodology approximates human expert analysis of satellite imagery, which enables early detection of new fires and detection under challenging background conditions, such as cloud cover. The NGFS fire radiative power algorithm includes atmospheric correction, making it more resilient to obstructions from clouds and smoke. In addition, NESDIS and partners at the NOAA Cooperative Institutes have developed machine-learning tools for lightning prediction (e.g., LightningCast) to support wildland fire management. NOAA demonstrated the NGFS in the NOAA Fire Weather Testbed, and a transition to operations is planned. This presentation will provide an overview of the ongoing NOAA/NESDIS wildland fire products and services transformation effort, including stakeholder feedback.