OUT-OF-DATE BUSHFIRE MAPS LEAVE BLIND SPOTS: THE SYDNEY SATELLITES THAT COULD HELP

As we head into another hot, dry summer, many of the councils planning hazard reduction burns near our homes are working from maps that are years out of date.

That is the warning from Sydney space company Spiral Blue, which is building satellite lasers designed to refresh those maps every few weeks, not every few years.

"Black Summer burned 5.5 million hectares and destroyed 2,448 homes in NSW alone, and fire authorities are warning of a heightened risk again this season," says Spiral Blue CEO and cofounder Taofiq Huq.

"Some state-wide data on how the bush has grown is more than a decade old."

Why bushfire maps matter this summer

The national Seasonal Bushfire Outlook for spring 2026 flags increased fire risk across northern and southeastern NSW, south-east Queensland and parts of Victoria, Tasmania, WA, SA and the NT.

A very strong El Niño is expected to bring warm, dry conditions.

Professor Marta Yebra, Director of the ANU Bushfire Research Centre of Excellence, says fuel management is one of the few ways we can influence how a fire behaves before it starts.

"Resources are limited and decisions about where and when to intervene matter," she says.

"Up-to-date information on fuel amount, structure and flammability can help target management efforts where they are most needed and assess whether interventions are achieving their intended outcomes."

The problem with today's maps

At the moment, the detailed 3D maps of vegetation that councils use come from LiDAR flown by aircraft.

It is expensive: Queensland recently spent $6 million on one round of LiDAR mapping across 26 council areas.

As a result, councils typically refresh their data only every few years.

One Western Sydney council that Spiral Blue has spoken to maps its tree canopy about once every four years, and would like to do it every year.

How the satellite lasers work

Spiral Blue's LiDAR fires short laser pulses at the ground and times how long each one takes to bounce back.

That builds a 3D picture of the landscape, showing how tall and dense the bush is and the shape of the ground underneath.

It also picks up the shrubs and low branches that act as a "ladder", carrying fire up into the treetops.

A single satellite is designed to pass over the same area every 20 days, while a full constellation would cover it daily, at a level of detail comparable to aerial surveys.

For councils, that could mean seeing which reserves next to homes have grown thick, checking whether last year's burn actually worked, and spotting regrowth near power lines, all before summer rather than after.

"Fire prevention starts months before summer, with decisions about where to burn and what to clear," Mr Huq says.

"Those decisions are only as good as the map in front of you. We want councils working from this season's map, not one from four years ago."

A home-grown Aussie export

Mr Huq says the technology is built to be used anywhere. "We're building this in Sydney, and we want to sell it to the world," he says.

Spiral Blue has launched 10 of its AI computers into orbit since 2021 and delivered its first LiDAR to UK customer Lodestar Space this year.

It leads a $3 million federal CRC-P grant project with Macquarie University and four industry partners to take its LiDAR from the lab into orbit.

Its first Earth-mapping mission is planned for 2028.

A chance to back the space race

Spiral Blue has also announced an equity crowdfunding raise on Birchal, giving everyday Australians the chance to invest in the business.

In a lovely touch, every investor's name will go on the next Space Edge Computer Spiral Blue delivers, and larger backers will have their names engraved on the first LiDAR mission.

You can register your interest on Birchal.

Always consider the general CSF risk warning and offer document before investing; this story is not financial advice.

In the meantime, it is worth checking your own bushfire plan with your state fire service before the hot weather sets in.