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Remote Sensing Applications Center (RSAC)

Learn about USDA Forest Service's Remote Sensing Center aiding wildfire management using satellite technology. Services include active fire mapping, post-fire assessments, and air quality monitoring.

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Remote Sensing Applications Center (RSAC)

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  1. USDA Forest Service Remote Sensing Applications CenterOperational Satellite-Based Remote Sensing Fire Support ProgramsWRAP/FETS Project MeetingBoise, IdahoAugust 31-September 1, 2009

  2. Remote Sensing Applications Center (RSAC) • National Technical Center • Detached Washington Office – Engineering • Geospatial Management Organization (GMO) • Mission: Provide national assistance to agency units and deputy areas in applying the most advanced geospatial technology toward improved monitoring and mapping of natural resources

  3. USDA Forest Service Organization • National Headquarters in Washington, DC • 9 Regional Offices • National Forest System • 155 National Forests and 20 National Grasslands • 600 Ranger Districts • 193 million acres in CONUS, AK and PR • Research • 7 stations • 50 field offices • State and Private Forestry • Fire & Aviation • Forest Health Protection • International Programs

  4. Remote Sensing Applications Center (RSAC) Rapid Disturbance Assessment and Services Program • Tactical and strategic remote sensing support Forest Service units and external partners in response to disturbance events • Includes operational active wildland fire management and post-fire assessment support programs/projects

  5. RSAC Areas of Interest for Operational Air Quality Management Support • Provide high temporal observations/value-added products from various satellites (MODIS, AURA, VIIRS, etc.) to support USFS and other agency air quality managers • Identify source/receptor relationships • Exceptional events in relation to states • Natural and anthropogenic sources of smoke relative to Class 1 areas • Rx fire effects on urban areas • Provide satellite-based ozone monitoring products, particularly in the south Sierras and the southeast U.S. • Integrate/analyze results with ongoing USFS ground-based ozone monitoring efforts • Provide fire detection, burn scar and burn severity geospatial data products (moderate and high resolution) for existing and future emissions tracking/forecasting applications • WRAP/FETS • Blue Sky Smoke Modeling Framework

  6. RSAC Satellite-Based Fire Mapping Programs Active Fire Mapping • MODIS Direct Readout/Active Fire Mapping Program • Near real-time fire detection, characterization and monitoring • Support interagency strategic fire management and planning Post-fire Mapping • Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (MTBS) • Assess frequency, extent and severity of all current/historical large wildland fires • Monitor national fire policy effectiveness • Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) Imagery Support • Emergency assessment of burn severity • Support emergency stabilization activities by USFS BAER teams • Rapid Assessment of Vegetation Condition after Wildfire (RAVG) • Rapid assessment of forest damage • Revegetation decision support data/information for USFS forest silviculturists

  7. Forest Service MODIS Active Fire Mapping Program • Satellite-based operational detection and monitoring of wildland fire activity in CONUS, Alaska, Hawaii & Canada • Generate and provide "value added” fire mapping and visualization products, and geospatial data • Facilitates decision support for strategic wildfire planning and response for U.S. and Canadian fire agencies • Prioritize allocation of fire suppression assets • Focus tactical airborne reconnaissance assets • Supports several fire-related applications and decision support systems

  8. Forest Service MODIS Active Fire Mapping Program Currently Leveraged Sensor Assets * VIIRS launch on NPOESS Preparatory Project (NPP) mission in June 2011 and subsequent NPOESS missions # GOES-R launch in 2015 and subsequent missions

  9. Central Idaho Aug 12, 2007 False Color Composite (1-KM detection centroids in yellow) Central Idaho Aug 12, 2007 False Color Composite (Active fires in orange) Central Idaho Aug 12, 2007 True Color Composite MODIS Fire & Thermal Anomalies (MOD14/MYD14) • Detects & characterizes fire at 1kmspatial resolution at time of satellite overpass • Leverages response of 4mand 11m bands to fire • Absolute thresholds and contextual analysis • Fire detection is affected by several variables • Atmospheric conditions, view angle, land cover, overpass time relative to fire activity, etc. • Fire activity smaller than 1km can be detected • 100m2 flaming fire (50% probability) • 50m2 flaming fire in ideal viewing conditions (~100% probability)

  10. Northern California – June 27, 2008 AFM Operational Fire Product Deliverables Value-Added Mapping/Visualization Products and Geospatial Data • Printable regional fire detection maps • Interactive web fire detection maps • Google Earth fire KML/KMZ products • Fire detection GIS datasets • True & False color image subsets • Fire detection analysis/summary products

  11. A Look At Recent Fire Activity With MODIS Southern California – August 29, 2009 1515 MDT Aqua MODIS True Color Composite

  12. A Look At Recent Fire Activity With MODIS Southern California – August 29, 2009 1515 MDT Aqua MODIS False Color Composite

  13. A Look At Recent Fire Activity With MODIS Station Fire – August 31, 2009 1300 MDT

  14. RSAC Satellite-Based Fire Mapping Programs Active Fire Mapping • MODIS Direct Readout/Active Fire Mapping Program • Near real-time fire detection, characterization and monitoring • Support interagency strategic fire management and planning Post-fire Mapping • Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (MTBS) • Assess frequency, extent and severity of all current/historical large wildland fires • Monitor national fire policy effectiveness • Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) Imagery Support • Emergency assessment of burn severity • Support emergency stabilization activities by USFS BAER teams • Rapid Assessment of Vegetation Condition after Wildfire (RAVG) • Rapid assessment of forest damage • Revegetation decision support data/information for USFS forest silviculturists

  15. MTBS Project Overview • Consistently map the location, extent and burn severity of large fires on all lands in the CONUS, AK, HI and PR from 1984 and 2010 • > 1,000 acres in the western United States • > 500 acres in the eastern United States • Initiated in FY 2006 • Sponsored by the interagency Wildland Fire Leadership Council (WFLC) • One element of a strategy monitoring the effectiveness of NFP and HFRA • Jointly implemented by USFS RSAC and USGS EROS • Equal funding from USDA-FS and DOI

  16. Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity Leveraged Sensor Assets 1 – LDCM launch currently scheduled for December 2012 Why Landsat??? • Operational precedent • NPS fire atlases • USFS/DOI BAER Programs • Landsat TM/ETM data record (1984 to present) • Consistent data record spanning ecologically and possibly climatically significant time frame • Resolution synergy • Spatial and spectral resolutions comparable to other national scale data

  17. Burn Severity Mapping Primer Exploiting Spectral Response Curves… Visible NIR SWIR

  18. Landsat NBR dNBR Burn Severity Pre-fire 6/8/2005 Difference Post-fire Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR) NBR = (NIR – SWIR) / (NIR + SWIR) 6/14/2007 Differenced Normalized Burn Ratio (dNBR) dNBR = Pre NBR – Post NBR Burn Severity Mapping Primer • Burn scar delineation and burn severity characterization are based on Landsat TM/ETM image pairs and the differenced Normalized Burn Ratio (dNBR) • See “Landscape Assessment” section in Fire Effects Monitoring and Inventory Protocol (FIREMON)

  19. MTBS Fire Mapping Methods Overview • Compile a single MTBS fire occurrence database (FOD) from existing data sources • 28,000+ fire occurrences between 1984-2008 • Numerous duplicates, spatial anomalies, etc • Based on FOD and prescribed assessment strategy, select pre and post-fire Landsat scenes • Determined by primarily biophysical setting of fire • Landsat TM/ETM+ data ordered and acquired from EROS • All Landsat data are free (since late 2008) • Perform necessary pre-processing, create and subset dNBR images, burn scar delineation, threshold dNBR images into burn severity classes • Metadata, map products, burn severity GIS data analysis, and reporting summary

  20. MTBS Fire Occurrence Locations 1984-2008 28,000+ target fires Numerous duplicates and spatial anomalies 28,000+ fires for 1984-2008

  21. MTBS Methods – Assessment Strategy • Based on fire type • Extended Assessment (EA) • Severity based on post-fire assessment at peak of green of next growing season • Forests/shrublands • Initial Assessment (IA) • Severity based on immediate post-fire assessment • Grasslands/shrublands • “Single Scene” Assessment • Lack of suitable pre-fire imagery or other factors; use post-fire NBR • Conducted on a limited basis (EAs and IAs)

  22. Prefire Image Postfire Image Thematic Burn Severity Burn Severity Indices Unburned to Low Low Moderate High MTBS Geospatial Products Fire Level Datasets • Available at http://www.mtbs.gov • Pre/Post-fire Landsat imagery • Bands 1-5, 7 • Burn scar boundary • Vector delineation of burned area extent based on image analysis • Continuous burn severity indices • dNBR/RdNBR • Thematic burn severity data • 6 classes (unburned to low, low, moderate, high, increased vegetation response, non-mappable areas)

  23. 1984-2007 ~9,600 fires completed 81.6 million acres MTBS Production Status

  24. MTBS Geospatial Products Composite MTBS Fire Datasets • National • Burn Scar Boundaries • ESRI Shapefile w/metadata • Fire attributes • Fire Occurrence Database • ESRI Shapefile w/metadata • Geographic centroid of burn scar boundaries for each fire • Fire and MTBS processing attributes • Regional • Thematic Burn Severity Image Mosaics • 6 class thematic GeoTiffs w/metadata • Available by MTBS mapping zone/year 2005 burn severity mosaics by MTBS zones

  25. Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) • Fast track emergency assessment • Fires ranging from 100s of acres to 100s of thousands of acres in size • Assess fire effects on the soil and watershed hydrologic function (erosion and flood potential) • Prescribe and implement emergency stabilization measures to mitigate potential hazards to: • Life • Property • Long-term soil productivity • Water quality • Natural resources • BAER response plan is required within 7 days of fire containment • Remote sensing support is critical in generating BAER team response plans Straw waddles on Pike-San Isabel NF Contour logging on Shasta-Trinity NF

  26. Burned Area Emergency Response Imagery Support • Provide rapid delivery of imagery and derived products to Forest Service BAER teams • Burned Area Reflectance Classification (BARC), preliminary vegetation burn severity, based on dNBR/dNDVI assessment • BAER teams use BARC with field observations and other spatial data to generate a soil burn severity map • RSAC remote sensing support provided at or immediately after fire containment • Emergency assessment • RSAC provides imagery and data products within 24 hours of image acquisition • 532 fires completed since 2001 (13.6 million acres) • USFS and DOI BAER support programs combined -736 fires completed since 2001 (25.7 million acres) Prefire Postfire BARC

  27. Burned Area Emergency Response Imagery Support Leveraged Sensor Assets – Use Best Available 1 – Anomalous SWIR band issues since April 2008; 2 -LDCM launch currently scheduled for December 2012

  28. Prefire Postfire dNBR BARC Unburned to Low Low Moderate High Creation of the BARC Black Pine 2 Fire Sawtooth NF 73,000 Acres Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR) Differenced Normalized Burn Ratio (dNBR) NBR = (NIR – SWIR) / (NIR + SWIR) dNBR = Pre NBR – Post NBR Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) Differenced NDVI (dNDVI) NDVI = (NIR – Red) / (NIR + Red) dNDVI = Pre NDVI – Post NDVI dNDVI is utilized when appropriate SWIR band is not available

  29. 3D Visualizations Map Products Burned Area Emergency Response Imagery Support BAER Support Rapid Delivery Products Prefire Image Postfire Image dNBR or dNDVI Image BARC Image

  30. Post-Fire Vegetation Management on National Forest System Lands • Agency resources to support reforestation in burned areas are limited, consequently, better prioritization is needed • USFS Region 5 facilitated a protocol for rapid identification of deforestation and reforestation need on National Forest System lands • Leverage relationship of satellite-based burn severity observations to Composite Burn Index (CBI) field plot data that quantify fire effects to vegetation (deforestation) • Spatially represent forested vs. deforested areas following wildfire • Based on Landfire EVT • Silviculturists use results as a tool to identify and prioritize land suitable for reforestation • Natural Recovery • Assisted Recovery (planting, seeding or site preparation for natural recovery)

  31. Postfire Image RdNBR 7 Class Basal Area Mortality Rapid Assessment of Vegetation Condition after Wildfire (RAVG) • Provide Landsat imagery and derived products characterizing fire effects on forest resources to silviculturists (based on USFS protocol) • Assessment based on RdNBR – a relative version of dNBR • Regression models based on CBI field plot data and RdNBR used to derive post-fire forest condition layers: • Burn severity • % basal area loss • % canopy cover loss • Conducted on fires where > 1,000 acres of NFS forested land is affected • RAVG data and summary products are provided within 30 days of fire containment • 142 fires completed since 2007 (~4.5 million acres)

  32. Rapid Assessment of Vegetation Condition after Wildfire Primary RAVG Product Deliverables Prefire Landsat image Postfire Landsat image Burn Scar Boundary dNBR and RdNBR % Change in Basal Area % Change in Canopy Cover Burn Severity Forested/Deforested map and tabular summaries by land status and slope

  33. Additional Information RSAC Fire Mapping Support Programs MODIS Active Fire Mapping Program http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity Project http://www.mtbs.gov BAER Imagery Support Program http://www.fs.fed.us/eng/rsac/baer Rapid Assessment of Vegetation after Fire Program http://www.fs.fed.us/postfirevegcondition/index.php

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