Since early 2007, the Forest Protection Department (FPD, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam) has installed and started operating a MODIS Direct Broadcast receiving station in Hanoi with primary purpose for early forest fire (hotspots) detection over Vietnam's territory. The TeraScan system routinely acquires processes and archiving daily MODIS data on-board of TERRA and AQUA satellites, while its Vulcan module automatically creates hotspots' data using NASA ATBD-MOD14 algorithm. In order to support FPD in effective and timely forest fire management, GeoViet Consulting has developed an on-line satellite-based fire information system - the Vietnam Firewatch. The system, which includes near-realtime active fire hotspot detection, interactive web-mapping fire visualization, fire database and statistical analysis functions, is in stable operation online (www.kiemlam. org.vn/FireWatchVN) since December 2008. This paper also presents the effectiveness of the system in supporting the forest fire management in the last two years and discusses ideas for further improvement including utilization of satellite data for multi-disciplinary resources management.
