Saving The Forest a Picture At a Time
Bushfires
Forests in Australia have experienced plenty of hardships due to the unfortunate spread of bushfires. In 2019-2020, the country suffered through a devastating fire season now known as the "Black Summer." These ferocious fires burned through vast areas of forests and woodlands, impacting billions of animals and causing significant ecological damage.
In response to the devastating bushfires, researchers from the University of the Sunshine Coast (UniSC) and the University of Adelaide’s Australian Institute for Machine Learning (AIML) launched the NOBURN (National Bushfire Resilience Network). This innovative project aims to use an app to detect bushfires.
Bushfire Detection
The app aims to raise awareness and empower Australian science citizens to contribute to bushfire prevention. By using the app, individuals can capture images of fuel loads, dryness, and forest structure. This data is then used to train AI models to differentiate between dry and wet fuels and predict the probability, severity, and potential burn area of bushfires. Additional moisture content data collected by researchers helps validate the AI models.
Professor Javen Shi, Director of Advanced Reasoning and Learning at AIML, explains that the AI models are designed to "mimic the eyes of human experts" in identifying bushfire hazards.
Performance
The research team has successfully trained deep learning models on satellite imagery of over 120 burn sites, ranging in size from 100 to 5,000 square meters. These models can also utilize predictors like temperature and humidity to forecast fire behavior.
Professor Shi emphasizes that this project is not solely focused on bushfire research. It brings together various disciplines to make bushfire research accessible to the public. The team envisions a future where AI-powered technology can enhance situational awareness for firefighters and emergency responders.
While the project is still under development, the team aims to expand its application to various aspects of bushfire management.