Minnesota teen creates system that pinpoints wildfire origins from smoke patterns
High-school student Anish Peri developed a method that uses smoke measurements and atmospheric models to locate the start of a wildfire, earning two science awards at the 2026 Minnesota State Science and Engineering Fair.
Anish Peri, a high-school student in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, tackled the difficulty of identifying wildfire ignition points by inverting atmospheric dispersion models. His system gathers readings of smoke-related gases from multiple sensors and feeds them into a mathematical framework that works backward to estimate the fire’s origin. Named “From Smoke to Source: Inverse Atmospheric Dispersion Modelling for Wildfire Localisation with Gas Sensor Networks,” the project was entered in the environmental engineering category at the 2026 Minnesota State Science and Engineering Fair.
Judges recognized the work with the NOAA Taking the Pulse of the Planet Award, which honors innovative research on Earth processes, and the Twin Cities Meteorological Society Award for creativity in atmospheric science. The achievement underscores the potential of combining sensor networks with advanced modeling to turn smoke into a diagnostic tool for early wildfire detection.
Why it matters
It shows how student-led innovation can improve early wildfire detection, potentially saving lives and resources.
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