2009 Annual Report - NASA Airborne Science Program

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Ikhana NASA Dryden Flight Research Center’s remotely piloted Predator B aircraft equipped with an infrared imaging sensor recently conducted postburn assessments of two Southern California large wildfire sites, the Piute Fire in Kern County and the Station Fire in the Angeles National Forest. Named Ikhana, the unmanned aircraft completed a sevenhour imaging flight in November of 2009 from NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center on Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. NASA and the U.S. Army partnered to obtain the post-burn imagery. More than 160,000 acres of burn area in the Angeles National Forest northeast of Los Angeles were scanned. The scanner collected images that will indicate any remaining hot spots in the fire area. Another use of the images is for the U.S. Forest Service’s Burned Area Emergency Rehabilitation, or BAER. The Station Fire imaging flight tracks were flown in the national airspace system though close coordination with the Federal Aviation Administration. The Autonomous Modular Scanner, developed by NASA’s Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif., was carried in a pod under the aircraft’s wing. The scanner operates like a digital camera with specialized filters to detect light energy at visible, infrared and thermal wavelengths. The scanner operated with a new photo mosaic capability at the request of the U.S. Forest Service. A photo mosaic provides ease of interpretation for the end user, which in the case of an active wildfire is the fire incident commander. The BAER data is derived from autonomous processes operating on the multi-spectral data available on the Autonomous Modular Scanner. The processes can be changed mid-mission to optimize collection of critical information, either in mapping active fires or assessing post-burn severity. The post-burn images collected by the scanner were transmitted through a communications satellite to NASA Ames, where the images were superimposed over Google Earth and Microsoft Virtual Earth maps to better visualize the locations. The images then were made available to the Forest Service for initial assessment of the damage caused by the fires and rehabilitation required. Ikhana carried the Autonomous Modular Scanner for Western States Fire Mission flights in 2007 and 2008, imaging wildfires from south of the U.S. border with Canada to near the Mexican border. Critical information about the location, size and terrain around the fires was sent to commanders in the field in as little as 10 minutes. The Ikhana team obtains data by using instrumentation developed at the Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. They combined the sensor imagery with Internet-based mapping tools to provide fire commanders on the ground with information enabling them to develop strategies for fighting the blazes. In support of the Fire Missions, the Ikhana flew approximately 20 flight hours and helped to save both lives and property. 68
The Ikhana is a civil variant of the Predator B aircraft built by the San Diego-based General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. NASA dubbed the aircraft Ikhana (ee-KAH-nah), a Native American word from the Choctaw Nation meaning intelligent, conscious or aware. Ikhana supports Earth science missions and advanced aeronautical technology development. The aircraft also is a testbed to develop capabilities and technologies to improve the utility of unmanned aerial systems. Designed for long-endurance, highaltitude flight, Ikhana was modified and instrumented for use in multiple civil research roles. In 2009, the Intelligence, Information Warfare Directorate (I2WD), a laboratory within the U.S. Army’s Communications-Electronics Research, Development, and Engineering Center (CERDEC) was Ikhana’s primary customer. I2WD is utilizing the Ikhana and Dryden’s UAS expertise to develop sensor technologies that will eventually be used on Predator B aircraft. A variety of atmospheric and remote sensing instruments, including duplicates of those sensors on orbiting satellites, can be installed to collect data during flights lasting up to 30 hours. NASA’s Ikhana has a wingspan of 66 feet and is 36 feet long. More than 400 pounds of sensors can be carried internally and over 2,000 pounds in external under-wing pods. Ikhana is powered by a Honeywell TPE 331-10T turbine engine and is capable of reaching altitudes above 40,000 feet. There are no funded Earth Science related support projects planned for FY2010. 69
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NASA Science Mission Directorate Ea
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Collaborations and Partnerships FAA
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FROM THE DIRECTOR Welcome to NASA
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PROGRAM ELEMENTS and EXECUTION The
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Langley and Glenn Research Centers
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AVIRIS Science Focus: HQ Sponsor: P
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CASIE Science Focus: HQ Sponsors: P
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Decadal Survey Support Missions Sin
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Page 71 and 72: payload, and enough fuel for a 4-5
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Page 113: Recognition and Awards Spring 2009
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Page 121 and 122: APPENDIX A In Memoriam Frank Caldei
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Figure 72: 1981 photo of Ames Aircr
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APPENDIX C Five-Year Plan Task Name
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24. NASA POLARIS 25. NASA SAGE III
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ATM AVIRIS AVOCET AXCTD Airborne To
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GLISTIN GloPac GOLD GPS GRIP GSFC G
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NAS NASA NASDAT NCAR NGC NIR NMEA N
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U UAPO UAS UAV UAVSAR UCSD UND URS
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2009 Annual Report - NASA Airborne Science Program

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