1
NASA Earth Science Disasters Program Remarks
John J. Murray
Associate Program Manager, Disasters
john.j.murray@nasa.gov
TROPICS Applications Workshop II
February 19 – 20, 2020

National Aeronautics and SpaceAdministration Applied RemoteSensingTrainingProgram 22

3
Research & Analysis Program Applied Sciences Program
NASA’sEarthScience Program
Flight Missions Earth Science Technology Office

Promotes the use of Earthobservations to improve the
prediction of, preparationfor,responseto,and recovery
fromnaturaland technological disastersby addressing
the research,response,andriskreductionaspects of disasters.
4
NASADisastersProgram

Disaster Risk Reduction & Resilience
5
• Expandingdiverse partnerships and
engagement with humanitarian and non-
traditional sectors
• Implementinginnovative EO capabilities
through increased knowledge of vulnerability
and exposure
• Developing proxies to assesssocietal impact
• Pursuinghuman-centered design
approaches and development of
products in decision-readyformats
• Exploringopportunities to improve risk
communication andlinkages between
science and policy

6
Building level impact analysis 2045. Red – flood depth exceeded the first
floor elevation
https://disasters.nasa.gov/resilience/
cair
Flood inundation map. Blue depicts area likely to flood today during a
hurricane Irene-like storm. Red depicts additional area likely to flood in
2045 due to SLR and subsidence

NASA ROSES 2018 A.37 Disaster Response and
Risk Reduction Research (10)
NASA ROSES 2016 A.50 GEO Global Flood Risk
Monitoring (GFRM) Research (3)
NASA ROSES 2016 A.50 GEO Global Wildfire
Information System (GWIS) Research (3)
7
Disasters Research Portfolio Focuses
on Disaster Risk Reduction

NASA ROSES 2018 A.37 Disaster
Response and Risk Reduction Research
8
1. Critical Infrastructure Exposure for Disaster Mitigation
2. SAR Data for Weather-related Disasters
3. Global Flood Modeling for Decision Making
4. SAR Rapid Damage Assessments
5. Landslide RiskReduction
6. Severe Wx & Hail Storm RiskAssessment
7. Tsunami Warning through Earthquake Products
8. Oil Spill Monitoring andStorm Damage Assessment
9. Forecasting of Fire Behavior and Smoke Impact
10.Volcanic AshMonitoring

NASA ROSES 2018 A.37 Disaster
Response and Risk Reduction Research
9
Critical Infrastructure Exposure for Disaster Mitigation
Image left – Vulnerability analysis showing catastrophe (CAT) model estimation of electrical substations which cannot be
seen visually but are deduced from Earth observations. The colors indicate inferred substation density, as shown in the
legend. Image right - satellite-derived optical data captures known electric supply in the state of Gujarat (population 60
million) on the western coast of India. Key features can be directly observed. CAT models are used by public and private
planners and the reinsurance industry. Credit: ImageCat / Charles Huyck

NASA ROSES 2018 A.37 Disaster
Response and Risk Reduction Research
10SAR Data for Weather-related Disasters
2017FloodingSeasoninBangladesh
CopyrightcontainsmodifiedCopernicusSentineldata(March–December
2017),processedbyFranzJMeyeronhttps://opensarlab.asf.alaska.edu/

NASA ROSES 2018 A.37 Disaster
Response and Risk Reduction Research
11Global Flood Modeling for Decision Making

NASA ROSES 2018 A.37 Disaster
Response and Risk Reduction Research
12
SAR Rapid Damage Assessments

NASA ROSES 2018 A.37 Disaster
Response and Risk Reduction Research
13Landslide RiskReduction

NASA ROSES 2018 A.37 Disaster
Response and Risk Reduction Research
14
Hail Storm RiskAssessment

NASA ROSES 2016 GEO GFRM
Global Flood Risk Monitoring Research
15
• Integrating Global Remote Sensing and Modeling Systems
for Local Flood Prediction and Impact Assessment
• Towards A Global Flood & Flash Flood Early Warning Early Action
System Driven by NASA Earth Observations and Hydrologic Models
• Global Rapid Flood Mapping System with Spaceborne
SAR Data

NASA ROSES 2016 GEO GFRM
Global Flood Risk Monitoring Research
16
Integrating Global Remote Sensing and Modeling Systems
for Local Flood Prediction and Impact Assessment
DFO Archive at University of Colorado showing forecast flood conditions on August 16, 2019 and maximum flooding on August 24 in
Sudan, after which there were 54 confirmed fatalities by that date. White Nile State was among the worst hit, with an estimated
66,485 people affected, 4 fatalities, 10,517 homes destroyed and 2,780 damaged. In North Darfur 10 fatalities were reported
with 1,161 homes destroyed and 1,155 damaged. Seven people died in North Kordofan State; fifteen in El Gezira State. Eight
deaths were reported in River Nile State in El Damar, Atbara,Berber, Abu Hamad, El Matama and Shendi localities.

NASA ROSES 2016 GEO GFRM
Global Flood Risk Monitoring Research
17
Towards A Global Flood & Flash Flood Early Warning Early Action
System Driven by NASA Earth Observations and Hydrologic Models
As flash flood tool development is getting under way at the University of Oklahoma, student
interns at Columbia have been assisting the PI in collecting case studies. Image left is a time
density plot of the Waze VEOC data within one ZCTA. Map of overlapping Waze flood reports
for Hurricane Irma. Only 71 out of 1076 Waze reports had an associated flash flood warning.

NASA ROSES 2016 GEO GFRM
Global Flood Risk Monitoring Research
18
Global Rapid Flood Mapping System with Spaceborne SAR Data
Jakarta, Indonesia on January 3, 2020: Flash Floods had displaced over 400,000

19
Science Applied – Serving Society
Typhoon Hagabis Impacts
On Oct. 9, 2019, NASA-NOAA’s Suomi NPP satellite
and ISS passed over strengthening Super Typhoon
Hagibis, the most devastating typhoon to hit Kantō
region of Japan since Ida in 1958. These captured
images of the storm were widely broadcast and
assisted in raising awareness of the scale and areas
at risk of widespread flooding and damage. Damage
proxy maps using Sentinel-1 A data were produced
with JPL PI and Singapore Co-I.

NASADisastersMapping Portal
15
https://maps.disasters.nasa.gov/
• Host and provide access to geo-enabled near real-time and value
added products through web applications, Portal layers
• NASA data in a beneficial format for planners, emergency
managers and GIS specialists within local, state, federal and
international disaster response, risk reduction and resiliency agencies.

21
THANK YOU

22
ACK-UP SLIDES

NASA ROSES 2016 GEO GWIS
Global Wildfire Information System Research
23
• Using the NASA polar-orbiting fire product record
to enhance and expand GWIS
• Global Fire Weather Database
• Development of a Harmonized Multi-Sensor Global Active
Fire Data Set

24
Recent Enhancements to GWIS Using
the NASA Polar-orbiting Fire Record
User can interactively point & click to select country of
interest (country outline shown on map)
Fire Analysis Portal
Ex; South Sudan 2017
This user selected region and analysis year;
page spawned as a separate window (a user
can spawn many windows e.g. several different
years for the same region, e.g. several different
regions for the same, e.g. for different regions
and years).
User can interactively select three options; (note, these 3 options graphics should show real results for the selected region and year)
Multi-year statistics Maps2017statistics

NASA ROSES 2016 GEO GWIS
Global Fire Weather Database
25
Fire Weather Index in NRT from surface observations, NWP and satellite precipitation
Example: Weekly evolution of historical Australian bushfires

NASA ROSES 2016 GEO GWIS
Global Wildfire Information System Research
26
Development of a Harmonized Multi-Sensor Global Active Fire Data Set
Clear land
Fire
Water/invalid
ecosystem
Cloud
Blockout zone
GOES-16 ABI FDC False Alarms
Augments existing GWIS fire mapping capabilities with the delivery of a harmonized global multi-sensor fire data set incorporating
geostationary fire data sets following comprehensive data validation and quality assessment and then demonstrate fire data analyses
tools and use those to generate metrics describing fire activity across regions. Promotes GIS-friendly fire data format incorporating
essential science data layers (e.g., FRP, cloud cover, block-out zones) supporting robust regional fire assessment.
Educate users on product characteristics and potential applications by promoting regional workshops

NASA ROSES 2018 A.37 Disaster
Response and Risk Reduction Research
27
Forecasting of Fire Behavior and Smoke Impact
Image left.. Project provided GOES-R animation for Disaster Program support to Saddleridge fire in December 2019. Image
right. Project team member Adam Kochanski featured in a NASA Video showing WRF-SFIRE used during the Manning Creek
Unit Prescribed Fire in Utah’s Fishlake National Forest.