Evaluate Sensitivities of Burn-Severity Mapping Algorithms for Different Ecosystems and Fire Histories in the United States

Project Summary:

This project is validating the Normalized Burn Ration (NBR), a burn-area mapping algorithm, for its robust and consistent performance under different conditions of ecosystems, fire histories and vegetation effects over time. The validation is based on Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) imagery and field data collected using the Composite Burn Index (CBI), a field tool for burn-severity rating and correlating field data with TM burn maps. Both NBR and CBI have been developed in a general Northern Rockies ecosystem.

Status Report:

• Landsat data for eleven fires has been acquired and processed with the NBR transformation
• CBI data has been collected for three of the eleven fires
• Preliminary correlations have indicated good results between the NBR and CBI data
• Posters and conference papers are being drafted