Lightning is the primary cause of large bushfires in Australia, with fires started by lightning accounting for more than 90% of the area burned during the Black Summer 2019-20 Bushfires. Out of potentially many thousands of lightning strikes from thunderstorms, only a small fraction of strikes are capable of starting a fire. Quickly and accurately detecting these lightning ignitions is essential for rapid fire containment and suppression, to prevent subsequent loss. Join three guests from the Fire Neural Network - a neural network based approach to detecting wildfires in real time - as they speak to the challenges and solutions to sourcing lighting ignitions.

This seminar is the first in a series of seminars on bushfire and detection science hosted by the ANU-Optus Bushfire Research Centre of Excellence.

Speakers

Dr. Istvan Kereszy is the CEO of Fire Neural Network (FNN). He holds an undergraduate degree in management and two master’s degrees, one in sustainable development and the other one in physics from the University of Florida. He received his Ph.D. in physics from the University of Florida in 2021. Istvan is a recipient of numerous fellowships including the US Department of Education’s FLAS Fellowship and the US State Department’s Fulbright Fellowship. His research specialization includes lightning electric and magnetic field analysis, lightning-ignited wildfire detection, along with the measurement and modelling of X-rays and Gamma-rays emitted during thunderstorms. 

Dr. Miguel Guimarães is an Assistant Professor at the Federal Center of Technological Education of Minas Gerais, Brazil. He is a member of the research group LABTEM - Laboratory of Electromagnetic Transients of CEFET-MG. His research interests include Lightning Physics and Phenomenology, Measurement of Lightning Currents and Associated Fields, Grounding, Lightning Protection of Transmission Lines, Distribution Lines and Wind Turbines.

Dr. Listz Araújo is an Assistant Professor at the Federal Center of Technological Education of Minas Gerais, Brazil. He is a member of the research group LABTEM - Laboratory of Electromagnetic Transients of CEFET-MG. His research interests include Microelectronics, Electronic instrumentation, Microcontroller and Embedded systems, Measurements of lightning electromagnetic current and fields.