In September 1994, the MODIS Fire Science Team participated in the Smoke, Cloud and Radiation-California (SCAR-C) field experiment in the northwestern U.S. This test was part of the development of remote sensing techniques for monitoring and characterizing fires from biomass burning.
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The experiment included detailed observations of wildfires and fires that were planned and conducted by the U.S. Forest Service; the latter are called prescribed fires. The Quinault prescribed fire on the coast of Washington state was studied in great detail during the SCAR-C experiment. The principal remote sensing measurements were made with the MODIS Airborne Simulator (MAS) onboard the NASA ER-2 high altitude research aircraft. The ER-2 flew eight times over the Quinault fire, which is pictured at the left. During each flyover an MAS image was generated, such as the one above, giving the size and apparent temperature of the fire and smoke plume. (Reds indicate highest temperatures.) These data have been used to establish a relationship between the rate of emission of thermal radiation from the fire and the rate of emission of smoke.
