Based at the University of California San Diego, ALERTCalifornia is a public safety program working to understand natural disasters and determine short and long-term impacts on people and the environment to inform management decisions.
VIEW LIVE CAMERA FEEDS
Cameras and sensors are deployed throughout California to monitor wildfires and disasters in real-time.
TESTIMONIALS
ALERTCalifornia has more than 1,000 high-definition, pan-tilt-zoom cameras deployed across California, providing a 24-hour backcountry network with near-infrared night vision to monitor disasters such as active wildfires. ALERTCalifornia cameras can perform 360-degree sweeps approximately every two minutes and can view as far as 60 miles on a clear day and 120 miles on a clear night. Explore our “camera quilt” to view live camera feeds and for more details on camera and network status.
ALERTCalifornia has an extensive, ever-expanding camera network in California. Researchers at UC San Diego have taken the lead in creating the cyberinfrastructure to process, store, manage and visualize the massive amounts of incoming data from these camera installations. Our discoveries help mitigate the impact of wildfires on people and property, and bolster research into how to best prepare and respond to wildfire threats, both before, during and after serious burn events.
As the ALERTCalifornia camera network and cyberinfrastructure grow in size and sophistication, UC San Diego researchers are using cutting-edge technology to gain insight into changing natural disaster patterns in the West. ALERTCalifornia provides state-of-the-art technology that supports data-driven decisions to prepare for, respond to, and recover from natural disasters.
THE LATEST FROM ALERTCalifornia
Located on Palomar Mountain, the Boucher Hill Lookout is a fantastic example of an active tower with colocated ALERTCalifornia cameras. The 100+ year old tower was refurbished in 2013 by @FflaSan, & is staffed in season. Watch live: https://bit.ly/49QeQkp #FFLAALERTCalifornia
Are you attending @IAFC #WUI2024? ALERTCalifornia will be there to highlight our network of monitoring cameras and to showcase the advanced AI created in partnership with @CAL_FIRE and industry partner Digital Path Inc. Learn more: https://bit.ly/3PoaSaj
Early morning snowy vistas are beautiful across the network. It was recently particularly nice at Anthony Peak. Watch live: https://bit.ly/4cmTBZ0
Lassen NF’s Dyer Mountain lookout is no longer staffed but ALERTCalifornia has two cameras at the location that capture dramatic icy views during the winter and help emergency managers monitor for fires during the season. Watch live: https://bit.ly/3TGxUfo #FFLAALERTCalifornia
Dr. Neal Driscoll is the principal investigator of the ALERTCalifornia program at the University of California San Diego, where he is a professor of geology and geophysics at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
Driscoll’s background in natural hazard research traces back more than 35 years. He has published more than 120 manuscripts in high impact peer-reviewed journals, including Science, Nature Geoscience, Geology, and the Journal of Geophysical Research on subjects ranging from earthquake hazards to devastating wildfires., He has received multiple awards during his career, including the Heezen and Storke Awards for excellence in research and UC San Diego’s inaugural Undergraduate Teaching Award. Driscoll has also appeared in articles published by The Associated Press, The New York Times, CBS News, The Los Angeles Times, KGTV, KPBS and other notable news outlets.
Driscoll received his Ph.D. in geology and geophysics from Columbia University and worked as an associate research scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Falmouth, MA before joining UC San Diego in 2000. His research interests at Scripps Oceanography include landscape and seascape evolution in response to tectonic deformation, sea-level fluctuations, climate, neotectonics, and geohazards.