The European Space Agency (ESA) plans to improve its capabilities to track the effects of wildfires. For this purpose, ESA recently offered a contract to the IT and business consulting firm CGI in order to create a new mapping service for wildfires. This mapping service will blend Earth Observation (EO) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) data to improve wildfire risk management globally.
A wildfire refers to “any uncontrolled and non-prescribed combustion or burning of plants in a natural setting such as a forest, grassland, brush land or tundra, which consumes the natural fuels and spreads based on environmental conditions”. Wildfires can pose a risk to natural environments and human life in conditions of dry weather and strong winds. In this regard, EO data has the potential to provide important information on wildfires that can be used in all phases of the disaster management cycle. More information on wildfires... read more