A Google-backed mission to detect wildfires from space launched a prototype satellite last week, which is now communicating with its developers on Earth.

It’s the first of at least 50 planned for a constellation of satellites called FireSat. The initiative is led by the nonprofit coalition Earth Fire Alliance, along with startup Muon Space, which designs and operates satellite networks. The initiative got $13 million from Google.org as well as technical support from the Google Research team.

“The devastating wildfires in Los Angeles earlier this year underscore the urgent need for real-time, high-fidelity infrared data to protect lives, communities, ecosystems, and economies,” Brian Collins, executive director of the alliance, said yesterday in a press release. 

Once it’s fully up and running, FireSat could give people much earlier warning than existing technology has allowed in the past. The FireSat constellation is expected to be able to detect fires as small as 5 x 5 meters (the size of a classroom). Earlier satellites couldn’t see blazes until they had grown to two to three acres in size (the size of two football fields), according to Google. To get a higher resolution, FireSat developers created custom sensors and algorithms to crunch the data using AI. 

People and planes often flag wildfires before satellites do, but satellites can play a critical role when it comes to monitoring more rural areas. And wildfires have become more widespread as climate change creates more hot and arid conditions in parts of the world including California, where Google is headquartered. 

The first FireSat launch took place in Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on March 14th. Three more satellites are scheduled to launch in 2026. Together, they’ll be able to check every point on Earth at least twice each day. “Key wildfire-prone regions” will be monitored more frequently, according to Muon Space. The entire constellation of more than 50 satellites is scheduled to become fully operational in 2030, providing updates at least every 20 minutes.