Applications and Opportunities of Remote Sensing in Fire Ecology

Dear Colleagues,

Wildfires and particularly extreme events, such as mega-fires, have increased dramatically during the last decades, both in terms of frequency and magnitude. Such phenomena represent dangerous natural hazards with transboundary and devastating aftermaths. Understanding wildfire dynamics, including its risks, spatiotemporal propagation, and effects is important for studying its ecological footprint.

Modern remote sensing technologies combined with recently developed machine learning and AI algorithms have led to a significant increase in the types of signals and imagery available. Remote sensing technologies, such as terrestrial, airborne, and satellite systems using various sensors (e.g., multispectral, lidar, etc.) have already demonstrated great potential for understanding the complex nature and great challenges of fire hazards and producing powerful and cost-effective tools for wildfire management. Furthermore, large amounts of reliable information as well as accurate predictions need to be readily available and systematically analysed to support prevention, preparedness, suppression, and post-wildfire restoration efforts.

Therefore, this Special Issue titled “Applications of Remote Sensing in Fire Ecology” is focused on coordinated and collaborative research efforts as an urgent priority, which are required at the European and worldwide levels in order to provide a powerful means for studying these phenomena, improving fire predictability, and mitigating short- and long-term consequences. Examples of applications to be considered range from fuel mapping, fire risk mapping, fire and smoke detection and propagation estimation, burned area estimation, and post-fire vegetation recovery monitoring. Articles may address, but are not limited, to the following topics:

• Fire ecology;
• Fire risk assessment and mapping;
• Fuel mapping;
• Forest ecosystem monitoring;
• Forest fire prevention;
• Fire and smoke detection;
• Fire and smoke propagation;
• Burned area estimation.

Dr. Nikos Grammalidis
Dr. Kosmas Dimitropoulos
Dr. Panagiotis Barmpoutis
Guest Editors

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