Active Fire Monitoring with Level 1.5 MSG Satellite Images

The first of the new generation of Meteosat satellites, known as Meteosat Second Generation (MSG-1), was launched in August 2002. As with the current Meteosat series, MSG is spin-stabilized and capable of greatly enhanced Earth observations. The satellite’s 12-channel imager, known formally as the Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infrared Imager (SEVIRI), observes the full disk of the Earth with an unprecedented repeat cycle of 15 min in 12 spectral wavelength regions or channels. Our goal is to collect maximum MSG images data with our real time acquisition system, to trust the continuous observation of the Earth’s full disk with a multi-spectral imager. This research gives an overview of the MSG SEVIRI instrument, the general approach for the active fire monitoring and the description of the algorithm together with the practical application of the tests and the algorithm. The AFMA algorithm (Active Fire Monitoring Algorithm) developed in this work is able to detect most of the existing active fires with a minimum of false alarms. The AFMA algorithm distinguishes between Diurnal and Nocturnal periods of day. The algorithm itself is based on a simple threshold algorithm. A few results are described and discussed.