HIGH SCHOOL 1st PLACE PROJECT: Tracking Canadian Wildfires with GOES-R Products
Katie Dong, Chelsea Sun, and Brandon Yu
High School: River Hill & Atholton High School / Columbia, Maryland
COACH: Li Ren
VIEW THE SCIENTIFIC POSTER (PDF Download) |
ABSTRACT: Canada's recent wildfires had severe consequences, including a drastic reduction in air quality due to smoke and particulate matter. These fires also caused significant environmental damage by releasing unprecedented amounts of air pollutants and greenhouse gases, contributing to climate change. Perhaps most concerning were the negative health impacts, with increased risks of injuries and respiratory problems. Our objective is to extract and analyze satellite data to track the evolution of smoke plumes and to better prepare for potential consequences of future wildfires. In this study we focus on the Canadian wildfires event in summer 2023. What did we experience in summer 2023? On June 8th, the air became very foggy, and the sky was orange. Many came to school with masks on to avoid being affected by the heavily polluted air. The picture (shown in the poster) shows what the sky looked like in Baltimore on that day. It was extremely gloomy and polluted. To track the smoke movement, we relied on the GOES-R satellite system. These geostationary satellites provide near real-time imagery and data covering the continental United States and parts of Canada. The key instrument onboard is the Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI), which captures high-resolution images of Earth across multiple spectral bands. This allows for highly accurate data and imagery used to observe various environmental aspects, including smoke plumes. |
WATCH THE POSTER PRESENTATIONMIDDLE SCHOOL 1st PLACE: How does El Niño Affect Wildfires in Canada?
by Carsten Drury, Max Meyer, Benjamin Gurch, and Emerson Kremkrau
Beacon Hill Middle School / Decatur, Georgia
COACHES: Ms. Beyers and Ms. Nicks
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ABSTRACT: The 2023 wildfire season in Canada was the harshest on record, images of the New York City skyline smothered in the smoke from the country's many fires is fresh in the mind of both the American and Canadian public. Our group decided to investigate the likelihood of naturally caused Canadian wildfires in the upcoming El Nino year which will worsen weather patterns. This is due to the fact that the heat caused by El Nino will lead to drought and create more inflammable conditions for forests and increases the probability of human caused fires. It also reduces storm amounts in Northern regions such as Canada leading to drier conditions. This leaves more opportunities for fires and increased area burned.
VIEW THE SCIENTIFIC POSTER (PDF Download) |
HONORABLE MENTIONS: Cloud Cover investgations during the Total Solar Eclipse
Medford Memorial Middle School, Medford New Jersey
COACH: Vicky Gorman
Solar Eclipse Affects Cumulus Clouds
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Solar Eclipse Causes Decrease in Cloud Cover
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