2004 EARTH SCIENCE VIDEOTAPES |
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Tape Title | Record ID | Date Produced | TRT: |
Synopsis |
| YEARS OF DROUGHT SIGNAL SEVERE FIRE SEASON | G04-024 | 5/10/04 | 8:54 | The National Interagency Fire Center predicts another above average fire season for most of the interior West in 2004. With the region's fifth year of drought under way, the impending fire season could match and possibly exceed the immense record-setting wildfires of 2002. A major signifier of this potential is the worsening drought conditions in most of the western United States. In an effort to help fire specialists better prepare for an impending wildfire season, a fleet of NASA satellites delivers snow pack, water level and vegetative cover data that help determine the fire potential across the country.
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TAPE CONTENTS: |
| ITEM (1): Last Year's Results, This Year's Potential - The 2002 Hayman Fire, the largest wildfire in Colorado's history, and the Rodeo-Chediski Fire in Arizona exemplify drought as a predictor of fire danger. With the continuing draught, 2004 fires could match and possibly exceed the wildfires of 2002. Images from NASA's Aqua and Terra satellites contribute regularly to the work of the National Interagency Fire Center, which utilizes the images for tracking fires and allocating resources.
a: The Hayman Fire in Colorado June 8, 2002
b. The Rodeo-Chedeski Fire in Arizona, June 18-29, 2002
Courtesy: NASA
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| ITEM (2): Rockies Snow Cover Decreases from 2001-2004 - Although not representative of an entire winter, these maps reveal there can be large year-to-year changes in snow cover; these changes in turn can affect the following summer's fire season. These images show snow cover for North America during the same 8-day period in January for four consecutive years (2001-04). White regions represent snow cover, green shows land areas not covered by snow, and blue is water. The gray patches represent areas where no data were collected. Terra's Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) collected the data. Courtesy: NASA
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| ITEM (3): Denver Blizzard of 2003 Offers Colorado Reprieve from Drought - In March 2003, a blizzard hit Denver dropping 30 inches of snow in the valley, and up to 87 inches in the mountains. Although this record-breaking snow of March 2003 helped, it was not enough to beat the ongoing drought. In contrast, March 2004 was one of the warmest and driest on record. These images from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) contrast the two years. Like most western states, Colorado gets most of its water supply from snow. The lack of snow this year pushes the state into its fifth year of drought.
Courtesy: NASA
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| ITEM (4): Water Supplies Dwindling in the Drought Stricken West - The Colorado Basin endured its fourth year of drought last year and computer models suggest water levels will go down another 15 to 20 feet this year, according to the Bureau of Reclamation. The Landsat 7 satellite captured these images of Lake Mead in May 2000 and 2003, showing a drastic decrease in water levels between the two years. The satellite is a joint project between NASA and the United States Geological Survey.
Courtesy: NASA/USGS
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| ITEM (5): Satellite Detects Increasing Loss of Vegetative Cover - Though it is too early in the year to see the impact of drought in the western United States in 2004, satellite imagery shows changes in vegetation between 1999 and 2003. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) measures how dense and green plant leaves are. NDVI images are useful as a measure of drought when compared to "normal" plant health. These images show NDVI anomalies in the western United States, as measured by the Europe's SPOT satellite provided by DigitalGlobe/SPOT, under agreement with the United States Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA/FAS).
This sequence highlights the NDVI anomaly data for the month of August from 1998-2003. Exceptionally lush vegetation appears as a positive anomaly (green), whereas an abnormally dry region exhibits a strong negative anomaly (dark red).
Courtesy: USDA/FAS/NASA
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| ITEM (6): NDVI Close-Up on Colorado - Focusing on Colorado, this sequence highlights the NDVI anomaly data for the month of August from 1998-2003. It is shown once with overlaid dates and once without. Exceptionally lush vegetation appears as a positive anomaly (green), whereas an abnormally dry region exhibits a strong negative anomaly (dark red).
Courtesy: USDA/FAS/NASA
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| ITEM (7): NDVI Close-Up on Arizona and New Mexico - Focusing on Arizona and New Mexico, this sequence highlights the NDVI anomaly data for the month of August from 1998-2003. It is shown once with overlaid dates and once without. Exceptionally lush vegetation appears as a positive anomaly (green), whereas an abnormally dry region exhibits a strong negative anomaly (dark red).
Courtesy: USDA/FAS/NASA
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| ITEM (8): MODIS Provides Data From The Terra Satellite - NASAÕs Terra satellite contributes regularly to the work of the National Interagency Fire Center, which utilizes the images for tracking fires and allocating resources. The following video is an animation of the Terra satellite in orbit.
Courtesy: NASA
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