Geostationary sensor based forest fire detection and monitoring: an improved version of the SFIDE algorithm

The paper aims to present the results obtained in the development of a system allowing for the detection and monitoring of forest fires and the continuous comparison of their intensity when several events occur simultaneously-a common occurrence in European Mediterranean countries during the summer season. The system, called SFIDE (Satellite FIre DEtection), exploits a geostationary satellite sensor (SEVIRI, Spinning Enhanced Visible and InfraRed Imager, on board of MSG, Meteosat Second Generation, satellite series). The algorithm was developed several years ago in the framework of a project (SIGRI) funded by the Italian Space Agency (ASI). This algorithm has been completely reviewed in order to enhance its efficiency by reducing false alarms rate preserving a high sensitivity. Due to the very low spatial resolution of SEVIRI images (4 × 4 km2 at Mediterranean latitude) the sensitivity of the algorithm should be very high to detect even small fires. The improvement of the algorithm has been obtained by: introducing the sun elevation angle in the computation of the preliminary thresholds to identify potential thermal anomalies (hot spots), introducing a contextual analysis in the detection of clouds and in the detection of night-time fires. The results of the algorithm have been validated in the Sardinia region by using ground true data provided by the regional Corpo Forestale e di Vigilanza Ambientale (CFVA). A significant reduction of the commission error (less than 10%) has been obtained with respect to the previous version of the algorithm and also with respect to fire-detection algorithms based on low earth orbit satellites.