Before/After Imagery from DigitalGlobe

The images marked “Before” were captured by DigitalGlobe’s WorldView-2 satellite on May 29, 2015. WorldView-2 “sees” the world in eight spectral bands, four in the visible part of the spectrum, and four in the invisible, near-infrared part of the spectrum. Near-infrared imaging is a valuable tool for understanding the health of vegetation on the ground, and in these false-color images, the bright red areas represent healthy forest land. The images marked “After” were captured by DigitalGlobe’s WorldView-2 satellite on May 5, 2016. Healthy vegetation still appears red, while the areas burned by the fire show up as black and gray.

DigitalGlobe also imaged the Fort McMurray area on May 5, 2016, with its WorldView-3 satellite (the yellow/purple images with “SWIR” in the file name). WorldView-3 has the unique ability to peer through smoke using Shortwave Infrared (SWIR) technology to see where fire the fire is burning and how intense it’s burning. In these false-color images, the yellow areas are those that have been burned by the fire, the purple areas are healthy vegetation, and the bright spots are where the fire is actively burning.

DigitalGlobe has provided imagery to the Alberta Provincial Government and other organizations involved in the ongoing response efforts. Read more about DigitalGlobe’s support for the wildfire response on the DigitalGlobe blog.

IMAGES:Alberta CAN WV2 29th MAY 2015 Before and Alberta CAN WV2 5th MAY 2016 After