A Multispectral Satellite-Based Integrated System for Monitoring Fire Disturbance and Recovery Dynamics in Forest Ecosystems

Forest fires are an increasing environmental challenge in Southern Europe, requiring reliable tools for assessing both fire-induced disturbances and subsequent ecosystem recovery. This study presents an integrated satellite-based system for automated monitoring of post-fire forest dynamics. The system combines multispectral data from Sentinel-2 and Landsat (TM, ETM+, OLI, OLI-2) with thermal anomaly information from MODIS and VIIRS within a unified processing framework. It is structured into two modules: Post-Fire Disturbance (PFDMO) and Post-Fire Recovery (PFRMO). The methodology builds on a validated algorithm integrating the Disturbance Index (DI), Vector of Instantaneous Condition (VIC), and Direction Angle (DA), enabling automated multi-temporal analysis from fire detection to recovery assessment. The system was applied to three wildfire-affected areas in Bulgaria under different environmental conditions. Results reveal substantial spatial variability in disturbance and recovery, with PFDMO values ranging from −5.17 to +10.16 and PFRMO values from −2.25 to +7.40. The results demonstrate the applicability of the proposed system for monitoring post-fire forest dynamics and illustrate its potential to support informed decision-making in forest management, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable resource use. The main contribution of the system lies in the integration of disturbance and recovery assessment within a single automated and scalable workflow based on freely available satellite data.