On June 27, 2017, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this natural-color image of fires in the southwestern United States. They include the Brian Head Fire in Utah, which has consumed more than 50,000 acres of trees and brush, and the Goodwin Fire in Arizona, which has burned more than 20,000 acres.
High temperatures have been credited as one factor that caused the fires to spread. In Prescott, Arizona, temperatures topped 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) during the recent heat wave. The area has been dry as well as hot, with the last rainfall in late May, according to local reporting. Areas south of the border have seen flare-ups too, with a sizable fire near Ensenada, Mexico.
References & Resources
- The Daily Courier (2017, June 29) How Goodwin Fire grew so fast. Accessed June 29.
- NASA Earth Observatory (2017, June 28) Brian Head Fire Rages.
NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, LANCE/EOSDIS Rapid Response. Caption by Pola Lem.
