Field-Portable Imaging Remote Sensing System For Automatic Identification And Imaging Of Hazardous Gases

Hazardous compounds may be released into the atmosphere in the case of fires, chemical accidents, terrorist acts, or war. In these cases, information about the released compounds is required immediately in order to take appropriate measures to protect workers, residents, emergency response personnel at the site of the release, and the environment. Remote sensing by infrared spectroscopy allows detection and identification of hazardous clouds in the atmosphere from long distances. In addition, imaging spectroscopy allows an assessment of the location, the dimensions and the dispersion of a potentially hazardous cloud. This additional information may contribute significantly to a correct assessment of a situation by emergency response forces. Therefore an imaging remote sensing system based on a Fourier-transform spectrometer with a focal plane array detector for automatic identification and imaging of gases has been developed. Imaging systems allow the use of spatial information in addition to spectral information. Thus, in order to achieve low limits of detection, algorithms that combine algorithms for spectral analysis and image analysis have been developed. In this work, the system and first results of measurements are presented.