FireSense is an ongoing NASA project focused on advancing scientific and technological capabilities for improved wildland fire management and forecasting in the United States. It has completed three deployments during the boreal fall and spring of 2023-2025 across the western and southeastern United States. Multiple aircraft were equipped with remote sensors such as the MODIS/ASTER Airborne Simulator (MASTER), Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR), Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer 3 (AVIRIS-3), and Scanning L-band Active Passive (SLAP) to collect data on vegetation, soil moisture, and areas affected by wildfires. FireSense is part of a larger Wildland Fire Initiative within NASA and is funded by NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.
2023-09-14 — 2025-04-20
Western United States, Southeastern United States, California, Montana, Arizona, Utah, Colorado, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma
The Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer - 3rd Generation (AVIRIS-3) is an airborne imaging spectrometer developed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). AVIRIS-3 is the third version of the NASA AVIRIS spectrometers, following AVIRIS-C and AVIRIS-NG. It features a higher signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), finer spatial sampling, and a wider swath than previous versions. It provides radiance and reflectance measurements across the 380-2500 nm spectral range at a 7.5 nm spectral resolution. AVIRIS-3 operates at a measurement frequency of 200 Hz and offers spatial sampling from 0.5 to 13 meters.
Generic-Atmospheric State (Gen-AtmsState) refers to non-specific instruments on a platform that measure atmospheric state parameters. These are typically in situ sensors that measure temperature, pressure, humidity, and wind speed and direction. Types of atmospheric state instruments include thermometers, hygrometers, barometers, and anemometers.
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Water Vapor
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Pressure
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Water Vapor > Water Vapor Indicators > Humidity
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Temperature > Surface Temperature > Air Temperature
Ceilometers are ground-based remote-sensing instruments that measure cloud ceilings and vertical visibility. They use a laser or another light source to detect backscatter from clouds, precipitation, and aerosols. Ceilometers provide precise, detailed measurements in all weather conditions and are cost-effective to operate. They are commonly used in boundary-layer and cloud research.
Radiosondes are balloon-borne instrument packages that measure pressure, temperature, humidity, and wind profiles. These sensors are connected to a radio transmitter that sends the measurements to a ground receiver, usually operating in the 400-406 MHz range. They typically record data every 1-6 seconds, depending on the radiosonde type and manufacturer. Radiosondes are used for weather forecasting, ground-truthing satellite data, atmospheric research, and as inputs for weather prediction models.
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Water Vapor > Water Vapor Profiles
The Fire Thermal InfraRed Spectrometer (FireTIRS) is an airborne thermal infrared (TIR) imaging system developed for NASA’s FireSense Project. It collects TIR data from wildland fires across multiple bands in the 7.8 to 12.6 μm range, enabling the retrieval of trace gases, aerosols, and particulate matter. It is designed to be mounted on uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) and can provide real-time fire data to support active fire detection, behavior assessment, and emissions monitoring. FireTIRS has a spatial resolution of 0.7 meters at an altitude of 100 meters.
The MODIS/ASTER Airborne Simulator (MASTER) is an airborne scanning spectrometer developed at NASA Ames Research Center (ARC) in collaboration with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to support the validation of MODIS and ASTER retrieval algorithms. MASTER is maintained and operated by the Airborne Sensor Facility (ASF) at ARC. It provides visible-to-shortwave infrared and thermal infrared imagery across 50 spectral channels spanning 0.4-13 μm. MASTER has a spatial resolution of 5 to 50 meters and a swath width of 1.87 to 37.25 km, depending on flight altitude. Its typical scan rate is 6.25 Hz.
Earth Science > Land Surface > Surface Thermal Properties
The Tactical Fire Remote Sensing (TACFI-RS) is a passive airborne fire mapping system developed by Trident Sensing. It uses long-wave infrared (LWIR) cameras to map fires, determine fire location and intensity over time, and analyze fire behavior. TACFI-RS produces fire map products with a spatial resolution of 10 meters and a temporal resolution of 5 minutes. Its high temporal resolution makes it useful for critical wildfire management decisions.
Earth Science > Biosphere > Ecological Dynamics > Fire Ecology
Earth Science > Human Dimensions > Natural Hazards > Wildfires
The Tactical Fire Remote Sensing (TACFI-RS) is a passive airborne fire mapping system developed by Trident Sensing. It uses long-wave infrared (LWIR) cameras to map fires, determine fire location and intensity over time, and analyze fire behavior. TACFI-RS produces fire map products with a spatial resolution of 10 meters and a temporal resolution of 5 minutes. Its high temporal resolution makes it useful for critical wildfire management decisions.
Earth Science > Biosphere > Ecological Dynamics > Fire Ecology
Earth Science > Human Dimensions > Natural Hazards > Wildfires
Generic-Atmospheric State (Gen-AtmsState) refers to non-specific instruments on a platform that measure atmospheric state parameters. These are typically in situ sensors that measure temperature, pressure, humidity, and wind speed and direction. Types of atmospheric state instruments include thermometers, hygrometers, barometers, and anemometers.
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Water Vapor
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Pressure
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Water Vapor > Water Vapor Indicators > Humidity
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Temperature > Surface Temperature > Air Temperature
Soil temperature sensors are in situ, ground-based sensors used to measure and monitor soil temperature. They use thermistors or thermocouples to detect changes in resistance and calculate temperature. Soil temperature sensors are used for agricultural purposes, environmental monitoring, and ecological research.
Earth Science > Agriculture > Soils
Earth Science > Climate Indicators > Land Surface/agriculture Indicators > Soil Temperature
Earth Science > Land Surface > Frozen Ground > Soil Temperature
Earth Science > Agriculture > Soils > Soil Temperature
Earth Science > Land Surface > Soils
Earth Science > Cryosphere > Frozen Ground > Soil Temperature
Earth Science > Land Surface > Soils > Soil Temperature
Soil moisture probes are in situ, ground-based sensors that measure soil water content. The most common type used in scientific research employs dielectric permittivity techniques, such as capacitance or time-domain reflectometry. These probes measure the soil's charge-storage capacity to determine soil moisture content. They typically operate at frequencies of 50 MHz or higher to reduce sensitivity to salinity. Soil moisture probes provide continuous measurements and are relatively easy to deploy.
Ceilometers are ground-based remote-sensing instruments that measure cloud ceilings and vertical visibility. They use a laser or another light source to detect backscatter from clouds, precipitation, and aerosols. Ceilometers provide precise, detailed measurements in all weather conditions and are cost-effective to operate. They are commonly used in boundary-layer and cloud research.
Generic-Atmospheric State (Gen-AtmsState) refers to non-specific instruments on a platform that measure atmospheric state parameters. These are typically in situ sensors that measure temperature, pressure, humidity, and wind speed and direction. Types of atmospheric state instruments include thermometers, hygrometers, barometers, and anemometers.
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Water Vapor
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Pressure
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Water Vapor > Water Vapor Indicators > Humidity
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Temperature > Surface Temperature > Air Temperature
The Ultra-High Frequency (UHF) wind profiler is a ground-based Doppler radar that measures electromagnetic signals to determine wind speed and direction. UHF wind profilers operate in the 300-1000 MHz frequency range. This high operating frequency enables high-resolution wind measurements in the boundary layer. NOAA operates a network of radar wind profilers as part of the NOAA Profiler Network (NPN).
A pyranometer is a ground-based or airborne radiation sensor that measures solar irradiance over a hemispherical field of view. It detects the amount of solar energy reaching the surface, capturing both direct and diffuse sunlight. Pyranometers operate across a spectral range of 280-3000 nm. They are most commonly used for solar monitoring, climate research, weather forecasting, agriculture, and energy management.
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Radiation > Solar Irradiance
Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Radiation > Solar Radiation
The Microwave Profiling Radiometer (MPR) is a ground-based passive radiometer manufactured by Radiometrics Corporation. It measures brightness temperature across 21 K-band channels (21-30 GHz) and 14 V-band channels (51-59 GHz). These measurements can be used to retrieve cloud base temperature, cloud base height, integrated liquid, and profiles of temperature, water vapor, relative humidity, and liquid water. The MPR has a vertical range from the surface to 10 km and provides retrievals every 1 minute. It has a height resolution of 50 m from the surface to 0.5 km, 100 m from 0.5 to 2 km, and 250 m from 2 to 10 km.
Earth Science > Spectral/engineering > Microwave > Brightness Temperature
The Halo Doppler Lidar is a ground-based Doppler wind lidar developed by Halo Photonics. It measures 1.5-micron lidar backscatter to retrieve boundary layer wind profiles. It can also determine aerosol loading and turbulence. It has a maximum range of 10 km and a vertical resolution of 18 to 60 m, depending on profiling needs. Halo Doppler Lidar has a pulse rate of 10 kHz and a sampling rate of 1 Hz.
The Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) is an airborne polarimetric L-band radar developed and operated by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). It provides differential interferometric measurements that help characterize deformation from phenomena such as earthquakes, volcanic activity, and glacial motion. UAVSAR operates at 1.26 GHz with a range bandwidth of 80 MHz. It offers a horizontal resolution of 6 meters and a swath width of 20 kilometers at an altitude of 12 kilometers.
The Scanning L-Band Active/Passive (SLAP) is an airborne remote sensor developed at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). SLAP is an airborne simulator for NASA’s Soil Moisture Active/Passive (SMAP) satellite and is used to retrieve soil moisture and soil freeze/thaw state measurements. It consists of three instruments: a passive microwave radiometer, an active scatterometer, and a thermal infrared sensor for surface temperature measurements. The radiometer operates at 1.4 GHz, while the scatterometer operates in the 1.2-1.3 GHz range. SLAP has a 100x200-meter footprint at a flight altitude of 300 meters.
The San Jose State University (SJSU) Wildfire Imaging System (SWIS) is an airborne imaging system operated by the SJSU Wildfire Interdisciplinary Research Center (WIRC). It uses mid-wave infrared (MWIR) and long-wave infrared (LWIR) optical sensors to capture multispectral images of wildfires. The MWIR camera, made by Telops, has a spectral range of 3-5 μm and a resolution of 640x512 pixels. The LWIR camera, made by Workwell, covers a spectral range of 7.5-13.5 μm and has a resolution of 640x512 pixels. The SWIS camera system provides imagery at 30 Hz, with a ground sampling distance of 2-3 meters and a swath width of 1.3-2 km.
Earth Science > Human Dimensions > Natural Hazards > Wildfires
The MODIS/ASTER Airborne Simulator (MASTER) is an airborne scanning spectrometer developed at NASA Ames Research Center (ARC) in collaboration with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to support the validation of MODIS and ASTER retrieval algorithms. MASTER is maintained and operated by the Airborne Sensor Facility (ASF) at ARC. It provides visible-to-shortwave infrared and thermal infrared imagery across 50 spectral channels spanning 0.4-13 μm. MASTER has a spatial resolution of 5 to 50 meters and a swath width of 1.87 to 37.25 km, depending on flight altitude. Its typical scan rate is 6.25 Hz.
Earth Science > Land Surface > Surface Thermal Properties
Ceilometers are ground-based remote-sensing instruments that measure cloud ceilings and vertical visibility. They use a laser or another light source to detect backscatter from clouds, precipitation, and aerosols. Ceilometers provide precise, detailed measurements in all weather conditions and are cost-effective to operate. They are commonly used in boundary-layer and cloud research.
Soil moisture probes are in situ, ground-based sensors that measure soil water content. The most common type used in scientific research employs dielectric permittivity techniques, such as capacitance or time-domain reflectometry. These probes measure the soil's charge-storage capacity to determine soil moisture content. They typically operate at frequencies of 50 MHz or higher to reduce sensitivity to salinity. Soil moisture probes provide continuous measurements and are relatively easy to deploy.
