A new tool for tracking wildfire smoke: Weather radar

Wildfire smoke can carry consequences far from the fire itself. Credit: NOAA

The Climate Program Office’s Atmospheric Chemistry, Carbon Cycle and Climate (AC4) Program funded a new study that explores using weather radar to estimate Fire Radiative Power (FRP), a crucial factor in understanding the impacts of wildfire smoke. Past research has used satellite measurements, and AC4 supported this work to improve smoke and dynamic air quality assessments. AC4-funded scientist Pablo Saide of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) led a research team from UCLA and University of Wisconsin to find out how well weather radar products can characterize wildfire and smoke behavior.