Background<\/h2>\n
By combining aircraft and ground-based observations with satellite data, INSPYRE researchers are working to improve our understanding of wildfire-driven storms, advance models that could help protect firefighters and communities, and provide data to refine atmospheric models.<\/p>\n
Pyrocumulonimbus clouds (pyroCbs) that form over fire-driven storms can loft smoke directly into the stratosphere. The smoke may persist for several months or more, altering atmospheric chemistry, affecting downstream weather, and potentially contributing to ozone depletion.<\/p>\n
Research Questions<\/h2>\n
Researchers with the INSPYRE mission will study the processes that cause pyroCbs<\/a> to determine why some storms inject smoke higher than others, and to examine how smoke plumes evolve once they enter the upper atmosphere.<\/p>\n By combining airborne and ground-based measurements with satellite observations and modeling, INSPYRE will address three science questions:\u00a0<\/p>\n During the 2026 wildfire season, INSPYRE researchers will deploy a host of remote sensing and air sampling instruments aboard NASA\u2019s high-altitude ER-2<\/a> aircraft and the National Center for Atmospheric Research’s Gulfstream V<\/a>. In addition, the mission will gather data on pyroCbs with ground-based instruments and satellite observations. The researchers plan to observe a wide range of wildfire behavior, from small fires that create modest pyrocumulus clouds to large pyroCb-generating fires capable of injecting smoke into the stratosphere at levels comparable to volcanic eruptions.<\/p>\n The EVS-4 missions: FARMFLUX<\/a> | FORTE<\/a> | HAMAQ<\/a> | INSPYRE<\/a> | LACCE<\/a> | SNOW4FLOW<\/a><\/p>\n\n
Science in Action <\/h2>\n
Explore other EVS-4 Campaigns<\/h2>\n