Scores of fires were burning in Mozambique on August 4, 2006, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite passed overhead. Places where MODIS detected actively burning fires are outlined in red. Smoke streams eastward over the Mozambique Channel, at the right side of the image. The widespread nature of the fires suggests that these are intentional agricultural fires that people are using to clear or renew crop or range land. Although it is not necessarily immediately hazardous, such large-scale burning can have a strong impact on weather, climate, human health, and natural resources.
The high-resolution image provided above has a spatial resolution of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at additional resolutions.
References & Resources
NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, Goddard Space Flight Center.
