Google and Muon Space launch new satellite to fight wildfires

The first satellite of the Google-backed FireSat constellation successfully entered orbit over the weekend, ushering in a new era of wildfire detection and monitoring. This constellation will be keeping a close eye on wildfires. When the constellation's more than 50 satellites are fully operational, they can image the Earth's surface almost every 20 minutes.

In the initial stage, the constellation will consist of only three satellites. After being put into use in 2026, every point on the earth will be revisited twice a day.

The first satellite, manufactured by Muon Space, was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base on March 14 on SpaceX’s Transport Plane 13. The sensor suite consists of a six-band multispectral infrared camera that detects wildfires over long distances.

Currently, most wildfire tracking is done via aerial photography from aircraft, or using low-resolution satellite imagery. The former is expensive and limits update frequency, while the latter has low resolution and the sensor is not specifically designed for wildfire detection.

The FireSate constellation aims to solve both of these problems. It can produce five-meter resolution imagery and when the constellation is fully flown, it will provide firefighters with near real-time updates on the movement and behavior of fires.