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On October 27, 2021, members of the POINTER project from NASA-JPL teamed up with first responders to test the tracking technology under simulated house fire conditions. The demonstration was carried out inside a residential structure on the Caltech campus in Southern California, the same structure that was used in the April 30, 2021, demonstration. 

Firefighter/Paramedic Steve Vandewalle of the @SanDiegoFireRescue Department shares how POINTER offers responders an added level of confidence inside burning structures because their team knows where they are at all times.  

POINTER uses magnetoquasistatic fields to three-dimensionally locate responders during emergencies—especially when visibility is low due to heavy smoke or debris. With POINTER, incident command can pinpoint team members to within one centimeter. The Science and Technology Directorate is collaborating with the @NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory and firefighters themselves to develop this groundbreaking first responder tracking technology. 

On April 30, 2021, members of the POINTER project tested the tracking technology inside a residential structure on the Caltech campus in Southern California. The technology is being developed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate for use by firefighters to help track team members inside hazardous environments that may be obscured by smoke and flames.