On June 26, 2008, the National Interagency Fire Center reported 25 uncontained large fires in Northern California and 7 in Southern California. As thousands of firefighters worked to contain the blazes, forecasters warned of fire-favorable weather on the approaching weekend, with “dry” thunderstorms and hot temperatures.
This natural-color image of Northern California was captured on June 26, 2008, by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite. Places where MODIS detected active fires are outlined in red. Thick smoke hangs over the Sacramento Valley, although the city of Redding is visible for the first time in several days.
The high-resolution image provided above is at MODIS’ maximum spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides images of the United States in additional resolutions and formats, including an infrared-enhanced version that highlights burned ground.
References & Resources
NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team. Caption by Rebecca Lindsey.
