Check out the first images of wildfires detected by FireSat

Today, in partnership with the Earth Fire Alliance and Muon Space, we shared the first images of wildfires detected by FireSat, a revolutionary new satellite constellation purpose-built to detect and monitor wildfires on a global scale. This marks an important milestone in the ongoing work from Google Research to develop AI-powered tools to protect communities and ecosystems worldwide.

FireSat was designed to create a dataset that transforms how devastating fires are managed. The infrared sensors on the satellite are specifically designed to peer through smoke, and provide accurate, near real-time tracking of fast-evolving fires.

In the first images, FireSat detected a small Oregon fire that went undetected by existing satellite systems. The FireSat constellation will be able to see fires as small as 5×5 meters — which is significantly more powerful than current real-time systems! Once fully operational, the constellation will scan every point of the Earth within 20 minutes, enabling faster fire detection and response.