2008 Annual Report - NASA Airborne Science Program
2008 Annual Report - NASA Airborne Science Program
2008 Annual Report - NASA Airborne Science Program
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
Figure 13<br />
AMS-Wildfire sensor data, collected from the <strong>NASA</strong> Ikhana<br />
UAS over the Basin Fire near Big Sur California on July 8,<br />
<strong>2008</strong>. This 3D rendering shows the AMS sensor-derived hot<br />
spot fire fronts generated from an autonomous, real-time<br />
processing algorithm running on processors on the aircraft.<br />
The fire front can be seen distinctly burning in the imagery<br />
as yellow pixels. This information was delivered in near-realtime<br />
to the on-site Incident Command Team.<br />
Center (MACC) in Redding, California and to<br />
the Sacramento Area Coordination Center<br />
(SACC).<br />
The Ikhana flew four missions over the<br />
Northern California fire complexes on July 8<br />
and 19, and September 17 and 19. The July<br />
8 mission flew 9.5 hours, covering the Piute,<br />
Clover, Silver, North Mountain, American<br />
River, Cub Complex, Canyon Complex, Basin,<br />
and Gap fires. The July 19 mission lasted 5.0<br />
hours, covering the American River, Camp,<br />
Cub Complex, Canyon, and Piute fire. The<br />
September 17 mission (a sensor checkout<br />
flight) extended 3.0 hours, supporting the<br />
collection of post-fire burn assessment data<br />
on the Piute fire. Finally, the September 19<br />
mission flew 3.5 hours, covering the Cascadel<br />
and Hidden fires in the central Sierra Nevada.<br />
The wildfire imaging missions again<br />
demonstrated the value of real-time, critical<br />
sensor–derived information to support<br />
federal and state disaster management<br />
25