Meet Anish Peri, the student tracing wildfires back to their source

Image: Minnesota State Science & Engineering Fair 2026 Awards' websiteWhen a wildfire spreads, smoke can travel far beyond the flames, making it difficult to determine exactly where a fire began. Anish Peri, a high-school student from Eden Prairie, Minnesota, approached the problem by turning the movement of smoke into a way of tracing a fire back to its source. His project, ‘From Smoke to Source: Inverse Atmospheric Dispersion Modelling for Wildfire Localisation with Gas Sensor Networks,’ explored how atmospheric modelling and networks of gas sensors could work together to identify the likely origin of a wildfire. The project was recognised at the 2026 Minnesota State Science and Engineering Fair, where Peri received the NOAA Taking the Pulse of the Planet Award and the Twin Cities Meteorological Society Award. The Minnesota Academy of Science describes the NOAA award as recognising research that demonstrates principles and technical innovations for understanding the Earth's dynamic processes.How Anish Peri used wildfire smoke to trace a fire back to its sourcePeri's project takes an unusual approach to wildfire detection. Instead of starting with a known fire location and predicting where its smoke might travel, his system works in the opposite direction. It uses observations of smoke-related gases and atmospheric conditions to estimate where the emissions originated. This approach is known as inverse atmospheric dispersion modelling. Atmospheric dispersion models are commonly used to predict how pollutants or other airborne substances move through the atmosphere. An inverse model reverses that process, using measurements downwind to estimate the location of the original source. Peri's research combined this modelling approach with a gas sensor network. Rather than relying on one measurement, multiple sensors can provide observations from different points. Those readings can then be incorporated into a model to narrow down the possible location of the wildfire. His project was entered in the environmental engineering category as HS-ENEV-637. The Minnesota Academy of Science lists the project under the title From Smoke to Source: Inverse Atmospheric Dispersion Modelling for Wildfire Localisation with Gas Sensor Networks.Why locating a wildfire's source from smoke is challengingSmoke does not remain directly above the fire that produced it. Wind can carry airborne gases and particles across considerable distances, while changing atmospheric conditions can alter their movement. That means a sensor detecting smoke may be nowhere near the original fire. This creates the central challenge behind Peri's research: how can scientists distinguish the point where smoke is detected from the point where it originated? An inverse atmospheric model provides a mathematical way to tackle that problem. By considering the observed concentrations of gases together with atmospheric dispersion, the system can work backwards towards the most likely source location. The use of several gas sensors adds another layer of information. Measurements from a network can provide multiple points of reference, potentially making it possible to distinguish between competing source locations rather than relying on a single sensor reading. Peri's earlier project listing described the work as ‘Early Wildfire Source Detection Using Gaussian Plume Dispersion Modeling,’ showing how his research centred on using atmospheric dispersion modelling to identify wildfire sources.A student project recognised by atmospheric science organisationsPeri's research stood out at the Minnesota State Science and Engineering Fair, where more than 400 students from across Minnesota competed in 2026. The Minnesota Academy of Science awarded his project the NOAA Taking the Pulse of the Planet Award, which recognises a high-school project demonstrating principles and technical innovations that contribute to understanding the Earth's dynamic processes. He also received the Twin Cities Meteorological Society Award, presented for ability and creativity in an atmospheric science or related exhibit. The same project was listed for both awards by the Minnesota Academy of Science. The recognition reflects how Peri's project sits at the intersection of several fields: atmospheric science, environmental engineering, sensor technology and mathematical modelling. Instead of treating wildfire smoke only as a consequence of a fire, his research explored whether that same smoke could contain enough information to help reveal where the fire began. That is what makes the project particularly interesting. The smoke drifting away from a wildfire is usually viewed as part of the problem. Peri's system explores a different possibility: smoke itself could become a clue for finding the source.