ALERTCalifornia Camera Network

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.


ALERTCalifornia has more than 1,200 high-definition, pan-tilt-zoom cameras deployed across California (as of February 2026), 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.

Data and Resources

Field Value
accessRights Public
appAudience Geospatial Scientists, Citizen Scientists, Government Agencies, Media
catalogTarget ckan
cndp WSTC
dataAuthType public
lang en
lastUpdateDate 2026-09-24
license other
ndp_creator_md5 29d304491fe8a7fb0a3960ed85790ca6
otherLicense CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
pocName Contact ALERTCalifornia
pocWebsite https://alertcalifornia.org/contact/
publisherType org
status submitted
theme ["Active Fire","Early Detection and Fast Fire Suppression","Fire Innovation Unit - eligible for FireWERX Challenge","Climate & Weather","Environment","Science & Technology","Population & Society"]
updateFreq Continuously
uploadType application
Groups
  • NSF
  • United States
Tags
  • NSF
  • United States
  • alertcalifornia-camera-integration
  • camera-network
  • live-cameras
  • live-feed
  • living-atlas
  • sensor-network
  • uc-san-diego
  • wildfire
isopen False
metadata_created 2026-10-30T17:09:16.900749
metadata_modified 2026-10-30T17:09:16.900755
notes <p>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.</p><p><br></p><p>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.</p><p><br></p><p>ALERTCalifornia has more than 1,200 high-definition, pan-tilt-zoom cameras deployed across California (as of February 2026), 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.</p>
num_resources 5
num_tags 10
title ALERTCalifornia Camera Network