Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR) is calculated using near-infrared and shortwave-infrared observations as (NIR - SWIR)/(NIR + SWIR). For Landsat 8 and Landsat 9, NBR is commonly calculated using Operational Land Imager (OLI) Band 5 for near-infrared and Band 7 for shortwave infrared. NBR is particularly sensitive to changes in healthy vegetation and charred or burned surfaces and is commonly used to assess areas affected by wildfire.

Landsat NBR can be used to identify burned vegetation and assess spatial patterns of wildfire impacts. Healthy vegetation generally produces higher positive NBR values, while recently burned or charred vegetation generally produces lower or negative values. Comparing pre-fire and post-fire NBR observations can also be used to calculate differenced NBR (dNBR) for assessing relative burn severity.

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Operational Land Imager (OLI) and Operational Land Imager-2 (OLI-2) aboard the NASA/USGS Landsat 8 and Landsat 9 satellites

30 meters

NASA, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)

NASA, USGS, Landsat, Landsat 8, Landsat 9, OLI, OLI-2, NBR, Normalized Burn Ratio, Wildfire, Burned Vegetation