Rizal Technological University

College of Arts and Sciences

Bachelor of Science in Astronomy

Typhoon Recovery in Communities Using VIIRS

Radiance Measurement

By:
John Patrick R. Calpito
Aaron Ezekiel Prado
Harriet Lois Villanueva

AST07- Astronomical Research Laboratory Immersion IA

Prof. Ryan Manuel D. Guido

June 2022
Abstract- Typhoons occur regularly in the
Philippines due to our geographic position.
Strong winds, torrential rains, and flash floods
make Filipinos particularly vulnerable to this
sort of calamity. Every year, 16 typhoons make
landfall in the Philippine islands. Making 111
million Filipinos suffer throughout these
seasons. By the use of Nighttime Imagery and
NASA’s VIIRS (Visible Infrared Imaging
Radiometer Suite), we can learn more about
how the presence of night light is impacted by
typhoons. It will demonstrate the changes in
the area before, during, and after the storm.
With the help of Nighttime Imagery and NASA’s
VIIRS we can information and show how these
methods are very significant to lessen the
casualties by assessing the images we’ve
gathered.
I. Introduction
Typhoons occur frequently in the Philippines and
that’s because of our geographical location.
Producing strong winds, heavy rains, and flash
floods make Filipinos very vulnerable to this type
of disaster.
There are average 16 typhoons that land on
Philippine islands annually. Making 111 million
Filipinos suffer during these times of the year.
Due to its differing climate from southern Cebu,
northern Cebu has greater rainfall and typhoon
activity.
Cebu City or also known as “Queen City of the
South” belongs to the region of Central Visayas
(Region VII). It has a main island as well as 167
other islands and islets. It was formerly known as
the first capital of the Philippines.
Most people who travel domestically do so to take
advantage of the sand beaches, resorts, and hotels
that border the shore. Numerous people travel for
religious celebrations like Sinulog Festival.
This research is aimed at light pollution, which
has gotten little attention in economics. Light
pollution has been described as "one of the most
rapidly developing alterations to the natural
environment," with "mankind engulfing itself in
a bright fog" (Cinzano et al., 2001).
In many scientific disciplines, including
atmospheric physics, environmental sciences,
natural sciences, and even human sciences,
there is a rising interest in light pollution. This
interest is not limited to astronomy, which is the
traditional focus. Due to the absence of global-
scale statistics on the distribution and amplitude
of artificial sky brightness, the entire scope and
ramifications of the issue have not yet been
addressed.
The aim of this research is to analyze the changes
in atmospheric orientation in the province of
Cebu with the occurrence of super-typhoon
Odette (Rai). With the help of VIIRS and data
interpretation using Python programming. The
researchers conducted a light pollution analysis
in the preparation-stage up until the recovery-
stage.
II. Methodology
Super Typhoon Odette (Rai) ravaged the
Philippine islands way back in December 2021.
The main focus area of this is Cebu City. One of
the worst-affected cities was caused by this
super typhoon.
The said province has a total land area of 4,994
sq km^2 (1909 sq. mi). With a total population of
3,325,385 that is 41.15% of total population in
Central Visayas and 16.16% of total population in
Visayas and 3.05% of the whole population in
Philippines. It was considered as 126th largest
island in the world.
Super Typhoon made its landfall on Cebu City at
around 1:30 pm on December 16, 2021. It
reached Category 4 status with winds of 150 mph
and performed an eyewall replacement cycle
with 160 mph winds. Since then, Odette has
caused the Philippines' most extensive
destruction, costing US$ 500 million (PhP 28
billion).

We used Nighttime Imagery and NASA’s VIIRS

(Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite) to
gather information about how typhoons affect
the existence of nighttime light. It will show the
differences before, during, and after the typhoon
occurred in the said area.

VIIRS utilized a pixel-difference approach that

was handled in Python software by counting the
retrieved RGB pixels on the acquired pictures.

We utilized screenshot images we gathered from

VIIRS from November 29, 2021, up until February
8, 2022, through NASA’s Worldview. It shows the
variation of nighttime light occurrences before
the super typhoon occurred up until the
recovery phase of the said province.

The main goal of this research is to identify how

long Cebu City and its people recovered from
super-typhoon Odette in 2021.