A project of The Hack Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit · EIN 81-2908499

One signal / One clear path

Notice it. Check it. See it. Share it.

The system is a chain. Each part exists to answer one simple question: what is happening out there right now?

California hills where a distant signal might first appear

A possible fire / 06:42

It begins with a change in the landscape.

01

Something changes

A sensor notices something unusual in the landscape.

02

A person checks it

The signal is reviewed before anything is sent into the field.

03

The aircraft takes a look

A camera moves closer to see what is actually happening.

04

The picture becomes clearer

Normal and thermal images help separate a false alarm from a real fire.

05

People get useful information

What the system sees is shared with the people deciding what to do next.

06

The system looks again

A return flight shows what changed and what still needs attention.

An aircraft moving over California terrain

Why an aircraft

Sometimes the only way to know is to go there.

The aircraft carries cameras over rough ground, giving a person a closer view without sending someone into danger first.

People stay in charge

The system brings evidence. People make the call.

Every part of the chain is built to make a hard decision clearer—not to remove the person responsible for making it.

People reviewing and building the system
03Next chapterMeet the people willing to build it.