NASA sends specialized aircraft, technology to aid Texas flood search and recovery operations

In the wake of the catastrophic July Fourth floods that barreled through south central Texas claiming lives and leaving nearly people missing NASA dispatched two aircraft to aid local recovery efforts and search and rescue operations NASA's high-altitude WB- aircraft took off from Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base in Houston on Tuesday and will conduct aerial surveys using its DyNAMITE Day Night Airborne Motion Imager for Terrestrial Environments sensor The sensor will take high-resolution photos of the Guadalupe River and several miles of the surrounding area which could accelerate urgency response times TEXAS RIVER FLOOD LEAVES AT LEAST DEAD AS EMERGENCY CREWS RACE TO FIND OTHERS MISSING CAMP EVACUATEDThe aircraft are responding as part of NASA s Disasters Response Coordination System which was activated to aid the flood exigency response in coordination with the Texas Division of Crisis Management Federal Urgency Management Agency FEMA and humanitarian groups Persistent cloud-cover has made it tough to obtain clear satellite imagery so the Disasters Activity coordinated with NASA s Airborne Science Plan at NASA s Johnson Space Flight Center in Houston to conduct a series of flights to gather observations of the impacted regions according to a NASA announcement Personnel noted the input will be provided to response teams and aid in rescue efforts and source allocation MAVERICKS ROOKIE COOPER FLAGG OFFERS MESSAGE OF BACKING TO TEXAS COMMUNITIES REELING FROM DEVASTATING FLOODSThe agency also sent its Uninhabited Aerial Carriage Synthetic Aperture Radar UAVSAR aboard a Gulfstream III from NASA s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards California on Wednesday to collect observations over the Guadalupe San Gabriel and Colorado river basins UAVSAR which can spot water through vegetation will be collecting information through the end of the week The club s goal is to characterize the extent of flooding to help with understanding the amount of damage within communities according to the announcement The disasters venture will create maps to analyze the severity of flooding and damage to buildings and infrastructure which will be shared on the NASA Disasters Mapping Portal as they become available