Rita Durão (IPMA/University of Lisbon) - The Potential of Fire Radiative Power to be an early smoke indicator
Rita Durão explains the FRP's potential as an early smoke indicator and shows the connection with higher air pollutant emissions.
The intensity of a wildfire can be assessed by integrating fire radiative power (FRP) measurements over time. Since FRP is proportional to the amount of burned biomass, higher FRP values are associated with more severe fires, with higher smoke levels and, consequently, higher air pollutant emissions. Thus, the goal of this work is to assess FRP's potential as an early smoke indicator, leveraging the very high-resolution MTG data (10-minute temporal resolution). PMx and CO emitted during the August 2025 wildfires in Iberia are analyzed to illustrate the relationship between air pollutant levels and fire intensity over the affected areas.