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A remote camera captured a fire that raged last August in a canyon near Los Angeles threatening vital communication links.
去年八月，一个远程照相机捕捉到了一场大火，大火发生在洛杉矶附近的一处峡谷，且威胁了主要通信链路。
It provided crucial information. I was able to take my phone, control the camera, point it at the fire,
摄像机提供了重要信息。我可以拿起手机，操控照相机，指向大火，
take it to the incident commander and show him what the threat was
并将它交给事故总指挥，展示给他威胁所在，
and he took appropriate action to direct airtanker drops to protect that peak.
他将采取适当的措施让灭火飞机保护这片山顶。
More than 100 remote cameras on mountaintops provide a view of 60% of the electrical company's service area, more are on their way,
超100个远程照相机架设在山顶，这覆盖了电力公司60%的服务区域，并将架设更多，
all monitored along with data from ground-based weather sensors in an operations center of Southern California Edison, an electrical utility company.
这些都将在南加州爱迪生电力公司的营运中心进行监控，此外还有地面气象传感器数据。
Fires up and down the U.S. West Coast are getting fiercer. Ten of California's 20 most destructive blazes have occurred since 2015.
整个美国西海岸的大火愈演愈烈，自2015年以来，加州的20起惨烈大火就发生了10起。
Climate is changing. We've had many years of drought leading up to this,
气候正在变化，多年的干旱导致这样的事情发生，
which has caused millions of trees across the state to die or be weakened because of disease.
整个大州的数百万棵树木因为疾病死亡或变衰弱。
We've also had a history of fire suppression policy, which has not kept our forests healthy.
我们一直有灭火政策，这影响了森林的健康。
And more residents are also living closer to wilderness areas, in places like Paradise,
更多市民住在离荒野地区更近的地方，比如天堂地区，
a northern California town destroyed by wildfire in November.
这是位于加州北部的城镇，去年11月被大火摧毁。
State officials said Wednesday the power lines of another company Pacific Gas and Electric sparked that blaze.
该州官员周三称另一家公司，太平洋煤气电力公司的输电线引发了这场大火。
The space agency NASA also tracks fires from the air and space.
美宇航局也从天空和太空跟踪大火。
Aircraft observations of course from manned aircraft and unmanned aircraft in some instances, but primarily focus on the global perspective,
在一些情况下，我们通过载人飞行器和无人飞行器进行观测，但主要关注的是全球，
looking at observations from our satellite-based platforms that NASA has and that other agencies have, European Space Agency and the lik.
通过我们和其他机构，比如欧洲宇航局拥有的卫星平台进行观测。
The information helps before, during and after a wildfire.
该信息对于大火发生之前，发生之中和发生之后有帮助。
We can do active fire detection. We can also do observations of the type of vegetation that's there,
我们可以对大火进行主动监测，我们还能观察当地的植物种类，
and most recently we've had a satellite that or an instrument that went on to the international space station called GEDI.
近日我们的卫星或者可以称之为一种仪器，名叫“GEDI”，它被送上了国际空间站。
It measures levels of biomass, the trees and brush that fuel fires.
它可以测量生物量水平，即树木和灌木为大火提供的燃料。
Fire is part of nature's ecosystem, but with the fire season getting longer and fires more intense,
大火是自然生态系统的一部分，但随着火灾季节的延长，大火变得更加凶猛，
the remote sensors are a welcome tool for firefighters dealing with the challenge.
远程传感器对消防员救火是一个不错的工具。
Mike O'Sullivan VOA news, Los Angeles
麦克·奥沙利文，VOA新闻洛杉矶报道
