Latest news with #ChrisVanArsdale
Fox News
02-04-2025
- Science
- Fox News
Google's new AI tech may know when your house will burn down
Wildfires are becoming an increasingly common threat worldwide. Record-breaking burns from Australia to the Amazon to the United States are devastating the environment. The deadly wildfires that raged across Los Angeles in January were estimated to have caused more than $250 billion in damages. Current satellite imagery is often low resolution, infrequently updated and unable to detect small fires. But what if there was a way to spot wildfires earlier and more accurately before they become raging infernos? Enter FireSat, a new satellite project designed to detect and track wildfires early. How early? The project aims to detect a fire that's merely 270 square feet – about the size of a classroom – within 20 minutes. It's also able to detect fires two to three acres in size, roughly the size of two football fields. The FireSat constellation will consist of more than 50 satellites when it goes live. The satellites are fitted with custom six-band, multispectral infrared cameras designed to capture imagery suitable for machine learning algorithms to accurately identify wildfires, differentiating them from misleading objects like smokestacks. Using artificial intelligence, FireSat rapidly compares a spot, wherever it is in the world, with previous imagery of that location, considering factors like nearby infrastructure and local weather to determine if there's a fire. "Differentiating between real fires and random 'noise' in the environment was a challenge," says Chris Van Arsdale, who works on climate and energy projects at Google. The team even loaded a plane with sensors to experiment with their progress. "The first time we used the plane, one of our team members lit a barbecue and a fire pit in his backyard so we could fly the plane over and test it," says Erica Brand, one of the project managers for FireSat. "And the sensors were able to pick it up." The first FireSat satellite has already been launched. The entire constellation should be in orbit by 2030. The satellite data will contribute to a global historical record of fire spread so that scientists can better model and understand wildfire behavior. Google Research and satellite manufacturer Muon Space are founding partners in the Earth Fire Alliance, the nonprofit home for FireSat. Funding for the constellation's first satellite comes in part from AI Collaboratives: Wildfires, an initiative created by that convenes leading nonprofits, academic institutions, government agencies and companies around the joint goal of using AI to prevent the devastating impact of wildfires. As part of AI Collaboratives, provided $13 million to support the launch of the first satellite in the FireSat constellation. 10 ESSENTIAL HOME SAFETY TIPS TO KEEP YOUR LOVED ONES SAFE So, what does this all mean? It means a future where wildfires are detected faster, contained quicker and cause less devastation. FireSat represents a major advance in wildfire management. This ambitious project has the potential to protect lives, homes and the environment we all cherish. If FireSat had been around during the last major wildfire in your area, how might the outcome have been different? Let us know by writing us at For more of my tech tips and security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading to Follow Kurt on his social channels: Answers to the most-asked CyberGuy questions: New from Kurt: Copyright 2025 All rights reserved.
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Google's new satellite network can help spot wildfires
The first FireSat satellite has launched and made a connection with Earth. The FireSat system is a collaborative effort between Google Research, Muon Space, Earth Fire Alliance, Moore Foundation, and numerous other agencies, and it has a single, deceptively simple purpose: to detect wildfires before they become too hard to contain and control. Wildfires have been a constant problem for agencies. Early detection is vital, but fires can often start in subtle ways; by the time anyone notices the growing blaze, it's too late to stop. Just take the wildfires in Los Angeles earlier this year as an example. Apps have been created to crowdsource fire detection, and the traditional method of watching for wildfires is through satellite imagery. However, smoke, debris, and other obstacles make satellite imagery unreliable at best. It is often only updated every 12 hours, too. FireSat builds on existing infrastructure to create what its team calls a 'wildfire boundary map.' This system will enable people to view wildfires through services like Google Maps. FireSat utilizes AI to search for fires. The way it works is by comparing a current image of a given location with previous imagery. 'Differentiating between real fires and random 'noise' in the environment was a challenge,' Chris Van Arsdale, co-founder of FireSat, says. 'We had to determine where to draw the line between what is a real fire versus things like sensor issues or misaligned pixels.' The new model is particularly effective. Previous detection methods often only picked up on wildfires after they were a few acres in size, but FireSat is quite a bit more capable. Erica Brand, one of the project managers for FireSat, gave this example. 'One of our team members lit a barbecue and a firepit in his backyard so we could fly the plane over and test it. And the sensors were able to pick it up.' FireSat is still several years away from being fully functional, but the team believes it will be able to accomplish things no wildfire detection system has been able to before. According to Google, the full system will be able to detect a wildfire about the size of a classroom within 20 minutes. This will give response teams significantly more time to contain the blaze before it spreads to residential and commercial areas.
