Finding Fires: The Next Generation

Geostationary fire detection and characterization has been available 24/7 since 2002 when the Wildfire Automated Biomass Burning Algorithm (WFABBA) was made an operational product by NOAA/NESDIS (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service). The WFABBA produces fire location and characterization data for all data received from current GOES, as well as Meteosat Second Generation, COMS, and the formerly operational MTSAT series. The experience with current generation geostationary platforms informed the requirements for the Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) on GOES-R, and the WFABBA was adapted to the instrument and is a baseline product (under the name Fire Detection and Characterization Algorithm [FDCA]). The WFABBA's legacy as an algorithm for multiple instruments allows for excellent continuity as we transition to the new generation of geostationary imagers represented by ABI and its fraternal twin the Advanced Himawari Imager (AHI) on Himawari-8. AHI data has allowed for extensive testing of the WFABBA prior to the launch of ABI, which has improved the performance of the algorithm for ABI and other platforms that it runs on. Overlap between the GOES-like COMS and AHI allows for cross-platform comparisons of detection performance that assists in characterizing continuinty of WFABBA output between generations of instruments. Examples and lessons learned from these studies will be presented as an illustration of the changes coming with ABI. The next-generation satellite imagers will provide a substantial step forward in the capabilities of geostationary fire detection, while retaining the legacy of, and consistency with, their forebears.