An update on The Hazard Mapping System (HMS) - a multiplatform remote sensing approach to fire and smoke detection

The Hazard Mapping System (HMS) is a multiplatform remote sensing approach to detecting fires and smoke over the US, Canada, Mexico and Central America. This system is an integral part of the Satellite Services Division's near realtime hazards detection and mitigation efforts. The system utilizes NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES), Polar Operational Environmental Satellites (POES), the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument on NASA's Terra and Aqua spacecraft and the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program Operational Linescan System (OLS) sensor, (F14 and F15). Automated detection algorithms are employed for each of the satellites (except DMSP OLS) for the fire detects while smoke is annotated by a satellite analyst. Fire detects can also be added by the satellite analyst. Major customers for this product include the National Weather Service, Storm Prediction Center, US Forest Service, Environmental Protection Agency, research science teams, as well as numerous federal, state and local land and air quality managers. In 2004 the HMS was upgraded by adding the Canadian, Mexican, and Central American sectors for hotspot and smoke detection. These sectors can be easily turned off or on by changing flags in the system configuration file. This enables analysis in sectors only during their respective burning seasons. The Alaskan and Canadian sectors are typically turned off in the winter season and the Mexican sector is cut off after the March-May burning season. But sectors can also be easily added or restarted if, for instance, smoke from a region is affecting the United States. Various ancillary data sources are used in the HMS to aid the analysis. Stable Lights is a static product that identifies stable sources of light from the OLS sensor and is usually associated with cities and urban areas. It appears on the screen as a transparent overlay on the satellite imagery being displayed. This capability can assist the analyst by screening out heat sources where stable lights are present. Vegetation type and water overlays aid in the decision to add or delete a fire point. Water sources many times may cause false detects due to low sun zenith angles during sunrise and sunset or due to temperature contrast between land and water at night. This overlay aides in quickly finding these false detects. Vegetation overlays enable the analyst by showing what type of land is present near the hotspot in question. For example, fires are more likely in forest or grassland than desert or barren lands. The SSD fire team is currently assessing the feasibility of a descriptive smoke text product and would like to incorporate additional datasets for the monitoring of fires, smoke, dust, and air pollution. The HMS is a dynamic product that changes with the needs of our analysts and customers.