University of Nevada, Reno, scientists working with SONY and Forest Guard on new systemGraham Kent, Nevada Seismological Laboratory director at the University of Nevada, Reno is leading the installation, testing and maintenance of a novel way to monitor
forests fires and other environmental data with the prototype of a new camera system developed by Sony-Europe.The new 360-degree,
solar-powered camera and wi-fi system was installed at Tahoe City, Calif. in anticipation of its debut Dec. 12 via the Internet from Copenhagen during the United Nations Climate Change Conference.The novel concept, Forest Guard, came from a group of students in Meadow Vista, Calif. who were forced from their homes last year when a forest fire burned 190 square miles of forest in the Northern California regionThe early-detection system for wildfires, Forest Guard, will use a closed-circuit television system which sends live pictures of the forest to a computer screen-saver or desktop that is available to internet users around the world.The network of live cameras will enable citizen firewatchers to quickly raise an alarm if a fire is seen, providing a quick response and thereby reducing potentially huge carbon emissions from a forest fire as well as saving lives and property. Firefighters will also be able to monitor the fire to better deploy resources and warn residents who may be in the path of a fire."We've been working on a similar system for several years for scientific research purposes and are grateful to be able to work with SONY on this prototype and get a system installed in the Tahoe-Reno area," Kent said. "The network is ideal for real-time data collection and optimizes the use and expense of the system."Kent's team, including Ken Smith of the Nevada Seismological Laboratory, Frank Vernon of UC San Diego and Geoff Schladow of the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center will also use the network's real-time capacity to monitor other environmental systems such as clim ...
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