Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) could help protect people from wildfires.
Artificial intelligence could be the latest tool in fighting wildfires
A new study shows that machine learning (computer algorithms that improve themselves without direct programming by humans) can improve lightning forecasting. A better understanding of where lightning can strike could help predict fires caused by lightning bolts from the sky.
“By combining remotely sensed data with information such as ground truth from past fires, vegetation health, and drought conditions, AI has the potential to improve wildfire monitoring and wildfire spread prediction,” Scott Mackaro, vice president of science, innovation and development at weather company AccuWeather, who was not involved in the research, told Lifewire in an email interview.
Better lightning forecasting can help prepare for potential wildfires and improve lightning safety warnings.
