Suggested Searches

1 min read

Fires in Los Angeles County

Instruments:
Natural Color
September 3, 2009
False Color
These true- and false-color images show the smoke and burn scar associated with the Station Fire on September 3, 2009.
NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using EO-1 ALI data provided courtesy of the NASA EO-1 Team. Caption by Michon Scott.

The Station Fire, which raged in the hills north of the city of Los Angeles, left behind a changed landscape. The Advanced Land Imager (ALI) on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite acquired these true- and false-color images on September 3, 2009. The true-color image (top) shows skies choked with thick smoke north of the city. The white outline in the true-color image indicates the area covered by the false color image immediately below. This image combines shortwave-infrared light, near-infrared light, and red light. In this image, a purple-red burn scar fills most of the image, outlined by deep pink hotspots showing the fire’s actively burning front. Land not yet burned appears bright green.

References & Resources

NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using EO-1 ALI data provided courtesy of the NASA EO-1 Team. Caption by Michon Scott.

You may also be interested in:

Stay up-to-date with the latest content from NASA as we explore the universe and discover more about our home planet.

Monroe Canyon Fire Intensifies
3 min read

The blaze in central Utah experienced rapid growth during dry, windy days in late July 2025, creating hazy skies throughout…

Article
Wildfire Sweeps Through Southern France
3 min read

The Aude fire rapidly burned around 16,000 hectares in August 2025, becoming the country’s largest fire since 1949.

Article
Seeing the Monroe Canyon Fire in a New Light
5 min read

As wildland fires raged in the American West, NASA airborne technology was there to image it in incredible detail.

Article