Lidar measures the toll of climate disasters
14 days ago
- #Climate Disasters
- #Wildfires
- #LiDAR
- LiDAR technology is used to measure landscape changes after the January 2025 wildfires in Los Angeles, revealing devastation beyond satellite imagery capabilities.
- The Eaton and Palisades fires in January 2025 caused significant destruction: 29 deaths, 16,000 structures destroyed, and $60 billion in losses over 55,000 acres.
- LiDAR works by emitting laser pulses to measure surface geometry, originally developed for the Apollo 15 mission in 1971.
- Researchers compare pre- and post-disaster LiDAR data to identify subtle changes like fault shifts, volcanic activity, and mudslides.
- ALERTCalifornia, led by Falko Kuester, uses LiDAR for real-time wildfire detection and post-disaster analysis.
- Cassandra Brigham's team at Arizona State University visualized elevation changes post-fire, showing lost structures (red) and new growth (blue).
- LiDAR helps track cascading effects of climate disasters, such as landslides and debris flows after vegetation loss.
- Historical LiDAR data is becoming more frequent, aiding in long-term environmental monitoring and disaster preparedness.
- Budget cuts to scientific research may threaten future LiDAR data collection projects crucial for climate disaster response.