Fires and Smoke with FIREX-AQ: Live from Idaho

by Ellen Gray / BOISE, IDAHO/

NASA, NOAA and university researchers are on an Earth expedition this summer studying fires and their smoke in the U.S. West. On July 23 from Boise, Idaho, the Fire Influence on Regional to Global Environments and Air Quality or FIREX-AQ, kicked off its study of fire smoke, what gases and tiny particulates are in it, and how they evolve and travel over the course of the fire’s lifespan and beyond. By gaining a better understanding of fire behavior and smoke plumes from direct measurements, the research done here will benefit satellite measurements and air quality forecasting in the future, as well as improve our overall understanding of fire dynamics in the atmosphere and their effects on climate.

NASA's DC-8 flying laboratory (left) and one of NOAA's Twin Otters (right) overfly fires and smoke during the FIREX-AQ campaign. They are being hosted by the Idaho National Guard's 124th Fighter Wing in Boise, Idaho.
NASA’s DC-8 flying laboratory (left) and one of NOAA’s Twin Otters (right) overfly fires and smoke during the FIREX-AQ campaign. They are being hosted by the Idaho National Guard’s 124th Fighter Wing in Boise, Idaho.

I’m Ellen Gray, a NASA science writer, and myself along with two NASA video producers, Katy Mersmann and Lauren Ward, will be shadowing the science team in Boise over the next week, sharing what it’s like to do science in the field with NASA’s DC-8 flying laboratory, two NOAA Twin Otter aircraft, and NASA Langley’s Mobile Laboratory, among many other moving parts that are taking measurements of smoke from the source.

We’ll be posting our day-to-day updates on the @NASAExpeditions Twitter and NASA Expeditions Facebook account and our deeper dives here and on the @NASAEarth Twitter and NASA Earth Facebook accounts. So follow along and stay tuned!

Boise is home to the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), a multi agency coordination center for fighting fires across the United States. NIFC, the U.S. Forest Service, the Joint Science Fire Program, the Bureau of Land Management as well as the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the California Air Resources Board are all partners in the FIREX-AQ campaign.
Boise is home to the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), a multi-agency coordination center for fighting fires across the United States. NIFC, the U.S. Forest Service, the Joint Science Fire Program, the Bureau of Land Management as well as the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the California Air Resources Board are all partners in the FIREX-AQ campaign.