Although primarily designed for meteorological applications, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) series of polar orbiting and geostationary satellites have been used to detect and monitor active fires for over 20 years. Satellite-derived fire products are essential in determining the extent and prevalence of fire activity around the globe. This paper presents an overview of current polar orbiting and geostationary fire detection capabilities and applications in a variety of biomes. The focus of this paper is on fire monitoring using the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES). The geostationary perspective offers the unique opportunity to detect fires as they occur with the capability for high-temporal monitoring. Throughout the Western Hemisphere GOES is being used to detect and characterize both anthropogenic and wild fires in real-time for hazard support activities and for documenting and evaluating the impact of biomass burning on the environment. GOES fire products are analyzed to determine trends in fire activity and smoke extent and transport associated with deforestation and agricultural management practices.

The dissemination and use of geostationary imagery and derived fire products in the Western Hemisphere serves as a prototype for future global geostationary fire monitoring efforts. This will be possible with the launch of the European METEOSAT (METEOrological SATellite) Second Generation (MSG) and the replacement Japanese Multi-functional Transport SATellite (MTSAT-1R) in the next 2 to 3 years. This suite of geostationary satellites will complement the U.S. and international network of environmental polar-orbiting satellites by providing information on the diurnal timing, spatial distribution, and characteristics of fire activity around the globe.