Forest Fire Hotspots, 2001

A hotspot is a pixel in an infrared satellite image that contains the spectral signature of burning vegetation. The process whereby these hotspots are identified is part of the Fire Monitoring, Mapping and Modeling System (Fire M3). Each image pixel, and therefore each hotspot, represents a one square kilometre on the ground. The fire within the hotspot may cover the entire area, or it may be as small as 0.001 square kilometre (about 30 by 30 metres). A particular pixel can be hot for several days in a row, as different areas within the pixel are burned. Hotspots and other satellite data are also used to estimate area burned. Given the size of Canada, the use of remote sensing data is considered to be the only cost-effective way to achieve a comprehensive overview of forest fire activity in near-real time.

Fire Monitoring, Mapping and Modeling System (Fire M3)

Fire M3 is a national fire information system that automatically identifies, monitors and maps large forest fires on a daily basis using infrared satellite images. These images are acquired daily at the Prince Albert Satellite Station in Saskatchewan. Processing is done at the Canada Centre for Remote Sensing in Ottawa, where automated image analysis calculations are done to identify active fires. Given the size of Canada, the use of remote sensing data is considered to be the only cost-effective way to achieve a comprehensive overview of forest fire activity in near-real time.

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Figure 1. Over 17 000 Hotspots Were Detected in Canada in 1999

After the hotspots have been identified, fire danger ratings are calculated for the hotspot locations. Output products are posted on the Canadian Forest Service Web site in the evening of the day the original images were acquired. The Web page includes daily and season-to-date hotspot maps, satellite images and summary charts. Thecartographic tool software supports zooming and querying.

Fire M3 serves several purposes. It gives a spatially-explicit overview of forest fire activity in Canada on a daily basis. Hotspots and other satellite data are also used to estimate area burned. In the past, the only way to estimate burned area in Canada was using provincial statistics, which became available from different provinces at different times, typically after the end of the fire season. The fire season lasts from approximately the beginning of May to the end of September. Fire M3 therefore plays a role in providing timely, national statistics at low cost.

The map below shows the locations of all the hotspots detected in 1999. Most of the fires are in the boreal forest, the broad band of mainly coniferous trees that stretches across the country from the Yukon to Newfoundland and Labrador. The boreal forest is prone to large, intense fires, especially in the west, because of its composition (needle-leaf trees), climate, and contiguity. Fire is a natural part of the boreal forest ecosystem, and plays a major role in nutrient and carbon cycling.

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Figure 2. 1999 Hotspots Map

The image below is a satellite image of part of northwestern Ontario taken on May 5, 1999. Several large fires were burning that day. Each one is represented by a cluster of hotspots. The hotspots are displayed in red for visibility. Otherwise, the fire locations would not be distinguishable on the image, though the smoke plumes would still be easy to spot.

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Smoke plumes can be hundreds of kilometres long

Limitations of the System

Not all fires are identified by the system. Only forested areas are monitored; the prairies, tundra and urban areas are excluded from the analysis. Also, the satellite sensors cannot "penetrate" through cloud cover. Fires burning under cloudy conditions will not show up as hotspots on the maps. Fire M3 is not intended as a fire detection tool, though in some remote areas and national parks it has been used as such. Fire detection for the purposes of fire suppression requires a much shorter turnaround time, and is most effectively achieved through the existing networks and systems run by the provincial, territorial and park agencies.

• Forest Fire Hotspots, 2005 Map | Read about this map
• Fire Danger Rating, 2005 Map | Read about this map
• Forest Fire Hotspots, 2004 Map | Read about this map
• Forest Fire Hotspots, 2003 Map | Read about this map
• Forest Fire Hotspots, 2002 Map | Read about this map

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