DLR’s FireBird mission monitoring the 2014/15 Holuhraun fissure eruption

Abstract

This study focuses on the analysis of imagery of the first satellite of DLR’s FireBird mission, the Technology Experiment Carrier TET-1, for monitoring of volcanic eruptions. As study site the Icelandic Holuhraun fissure eruption, which started in late August 2014, is selected. With its mid-wave infrared channel, TET is ideally suited for the detection of high temperature events such as lava flows. In addition, the combination of the mid and long-wave infrared channel of TET enables the estimation of the kinematic temperature and the area of high temperature events. First, the hotspot detection rate of TET is analyzed against the one of the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS). Second, the area of the lava field detected by TET is compared with high spatial resolution optical (Landsat) and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery (TerraSAR-X and Sentinel-1). Third, the lava temperature estimated from the TET datasets is compared with temperature values derived from Landsat-8 nighttime imagery. Finally, a comparison of the fire radiative power (FRP) derived from TET and from MODIS data is performed, showing the superiority of TET regarding the detectable maximum temperatures.