NASA’s high-altitude research aircraft conducted flights over British Columbia’s wildfires to study the weather phenomena triggered by these large blazes. The ER-2 plane, as per online aviation tracking data, flew multiple missions over B.C.’s southern Interior, including a lengthy six-hour flight originating from Great Falls, Mont. The aircraft spent approximately four hours at 60,000 feet above the Clinton area, where the substantial Pear Lake wildfire is active, before heading back to U.S. airspace after passing over Lake Revelstoke.
The ER-2 aircraft, a revamped Cold War spy plane also known as the U-2, has a history of achieving extreme altitude flights surpassing commercial flight altitudes. NASA’s focus with the ER-2 is the study of pyrocumulonimbus clouds, described as an enigmatic form of severe weather on Earth. These clouds, generated by the intense smoke and heat from wildfires like the Pear Lake blaze, can lead to the formation of rain, lightning, and fire tornadoes, according to the B.C. Wildfire Service.
Equipped with advanced infrared wildfire tracking technology, the ER-2 aircraft is crucial in collecting data on pyrocumulonimbus clouds. NASA emphasizes that these storms, characterized by dense smoke and lightning, pose risks to aviation and firefighting efforts. Real-time monitoring and analysis of these phenomena aim to enhance future forecasting capabilities for such hazardous weather events.
