XN FireSight · Satellite detections
Satellite detections: the hotspots around the site, every hour
Every hour we collect the thermal anomalies satellites see around the sites. A hotspot is not a confirmed fire: it helps you notice early, it does not replace those who respond.
The sources
Four sensors, with their limits
The thermal anomalies come from NASA FIRMS and from Copernicus. As EFFIS states for the same sources, they are available within 2-3 hours, small fires or fires under smoke and clouds can be missed, and not every hotspot is a fire.
- 375 m
VIIRS
From the SNPP, NOAA-20 and NOAA-21 satellites, through NASA FIRMS.
- 1 km
MODIS
From the Terra and Aqua satellites, through NASA FIRMS.
- 1 km
Sentinel-3 SLSTR
With the fire radiative power, within 3 hours.
- 1 km
MTG FCI
The fire mask of the European geostationary satellite, without radiative power.
Sources: EFFIS, active fire detection · NASA FIRMS
On the platform
What reaches the site
The detections are kept for 30 days and can be read for the box around each site; the report sums them up.
What we give
- The detections inside the site's box, collected every hour, with sensor, time and confidence
- The last 30 days of history
- The summary in the report: how many detections, how far away, with which power
Only where measured
- Fire radiative power: only where the sensor measures it (VIIRS, MODIS, Sentinel-3)
What they do not do
- Confirm a fire: a hotspot is a thermal anomaly
- Replace 112, Civil Protection or the fire brigade
- Map burnt areas: we do not have a burnt-area layer
Twenty-five years of data
Fires around the world since 2000
In the resources you find the explorer of every vegetation fire seen by MODIS since November 2000, with a page for each of 157 countries.
Open the wildfire dataFAQ
Questions on the detections
Is it an alert service?
No. We collect the detections every hour and show them for the site; there is no alert and no one on watch. In case of fire, call 112.
Why can a hotspot not be a fire?
Because the satellite sees a thermal anomaly: it may be a fire, but also a very hot surface or an industrial source. That is why EFFIS warns that not every hotspot is a fire.
How old are the data?
They arrive within 2-3 hours for the FIRMS sources and within 3 hours for Sentinel-3; we collect them every hour.
30 minutes with the team, on XN FireSight.
Video call on Google Meet
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