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Western Fires: Fast Approach
…
| Title |
Western Fires: Fast Approach with State Lines |
| Abstract |
Western Fires. Fast Approach with State Lines. August 6, 2000 |
| Completed |
2000-08-07 |
|
Western Fires (short version
…
| Title |
Western Fires (short version) |
| Abstract |
Western Fires (short version). August 6, 2000 |
| Completed |
2000-08-07 |
|
Western Fires. Slow Approach
…
| Title |
Western Fires. Slow Approach with State Lines. |
| Abstract |
Western Fires. Slow Approach with State Lines. August 6, 2000 |
| Completed |
2000-08-07 |
|
Blizzards in the Western Uni
…
| Title |
Blizzards in the Western United States |
| Description |
A series of heavy winter storms pummeled parts of the western United States between December 24, 2003, and January 3, 2004, blanketing the region with deep snow. Salt Lake City, Utah, reported more than six feet of snow, according to news reports. The blizzards that rolled through California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado closed roads, knocked out power, and claimed at least two lives in subsequent avalanches. These Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS) images, taken on January 5, 2004, by the Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite, show the extent of the snowfall from California in the west to the Dakotas, Nebraska, and Colorado in the east. The Great Salt Lake is the two-toned body of water in the center of the images. In the top image, shown in true color, only a sliver of green land west of the Sierra Nevada Mountains can be see on the left side of the image?clouds and snow obscure the rest of the landscape. The bottom image shows the same scene in false color. Here, snow and ice are dark red and orange, while clouds are white and peach. Water is black. The false color image helps differentiate between cloud cover and snow and ice on the ground. The high resolution images provided above are at 500 meters per pixel. Image courtesy Jesse Allen, based on data from the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC |
|
Blizzards in the Western Uni
…
| Title |
Blizzards in the Western United States |
| Description |
A series of heavy winter storms pummeled parts of the western United States between December 24, 2003, and January 3, 2004, blanketing the region with deep snow. Salt Lake City, Utah, reported more than six feet of snow, according to news reports. The blizzards that rolled through California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado closed roads, knocked out power, and claimed at least two lives in subsequent avalanches. These Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS) images, taken on January 5, 2004, by the Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite, show the extent of the snowfall from California in the west to the Dakotas, Nebraska, and Colorado in the east. The Great Salt Lake is the two-toned body of water in the center of the images. In the top image, shown in true color, only a sliver of green land west of the Sierra Nevada Mountains can be see on the left side of the image?clouds and snow obscure the rest of the landscape. The bottom image shows the same scene in false color. Here, snow and ice are dark red and orange, while clouds are white and peach. Water is black. The false color image helps differentiate between cloud cover and snow and ice on the ground. The high resolution images provided above are at 500 meters per pixel. Image courtesy Jesse Allen, based on data from the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC |
|
Blizzards in the Western Uni
…
| Title |
Blizzards in the Western United States |
| Description |
A series of heavy winter storms pummeled parts of the western United States between December 24, 2003, and January 3, 2004, blanketing the region with deep snow. Salt Lake City, Utah, reported more than six feet of snow, according to news reports. The blizzards that rolled through California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado closed roads, knocked out power, and claimed at least two lives in subsequent avalanches. These Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS) images, taken on January 5, 2004, by the Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite, show the extent of the snowfall from California in the west to the Dakotas, Nebraska, and Colorado in the east. The Great Salt Lake is the two-toned body of water in the center of the images. In the top image, shown in true color, only a sliver of green land west of the Sierra Nevada Mountains can be see on the left side of the image?clouds and snow obscure the rest of the landscape. The bottom image shows the same scene in false color. Here, snow and ice are dark red and orange, while clouds are white and peach. Water is black. The false color image helps differentiate between cloud cover and snow and ice on the ground. The high resolution images provided above are at 500 meters per pixel. Image courtesy Jesse Allen, based on data from the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC |
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Burn Scars in the Pacific No
…
| Title |
Burn Scars in the Pacific Northwest |
| Description |
Fire season is winding down in western North America, but this false-color image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Aqua satellite reveals the season?s fire-scarred landscape. Vegetation is in shades of green, while burned areas are red. Scars dot the Northern Rockies from Canada (roughly top half of image) to Montana (bottom right) and Idaho, to its west. Additional large scars are visible in the Coast Mountains (left) which stretch from British Columbia, Canada, southward into Washington. Clouds are white and light blue, lakes and rivers are dark blue, and snow is bright blue. Naturally bare ground (or extremely low vegetation), such as on the highest mountains ridges at top center, or in the Columbia River Basin (bottom center), is pinkish tan. MODIS captured this image on October 4, 2003. Image courtesy Jesse Allen, based on data from the MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC |
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Haze over the Great Lakes
| Title |
Haze over the Great Lakes |
| Description |
Haze collected over the Great Lakes region at the end of July 2007. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] flying on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image on July 31. In this image, the haze appears as a blue-gray film, thickest over northern Michigan and Lake Superior. Haze also obscures the view of Lake Huron and Lake Erie. Although the exact source of the haze was uncertain, it could have resulted from fires in Canada [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14405 ] or the United States. [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14398 ] An August 1, 2007, posting on the U.S. Air Quality [ http://alg.umbc.edu/usaq/ ] (Smog Blog) at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, traced a trajectory of smoke from fires in Oregon, Idaho, and Montana passing over the Great Lakes region and continuing southeast toward Baltimore. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC. The Rapid Response Team provides daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA3/ ] of this region. |
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Heatwave in the Western Unit
…
| Title |
Heatwave in the Western United States |
| Description |
The oppressive heat that crept over parts of the western United States during the first few days of July 2007 [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14380 ] took hold of the entire West during the week of July 4 through July 11. Deep red tones blanket every western state in this land surface temperature image, an indication that temperatures were warmer than in previous years. The image was made with data collected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite and shows temperatures recorded between July 4 and July 11, 2007, compared to the average of temperatures observed during the same period in 2000, 2001, and 2002. Areas that are warmer than during that three-year period are red, while cooler areas are blue. Triple-digit temperatures broke or matched records from Las Vegas, Nevada, to Great Falls, Montana, during this period. In this image, a cluster of red-black over eastern Washington, northern Idaho, and eastern Montana indicates that these regions experienced much warmer temperatures than in previous years. Western South Dakota (the Black Hills region) was also exceptionally warm. On the other end of the scale, Texas was much cooler than it had been in 2000, 2001, and 2002. Heavy rains pounded Texas on and off throughout this period, contributing to wide-spread flooding. [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14363 ] You can download a global KMZ file of Land Surface Temperature anomaly [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/Images/kansas_ast_2007187.kmz ] suitable for use with Google Earth. [ http://earth.google.com/ ] NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data obtained courtesy of the MODIS Land Processes [ http://modis-land.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] team. |
|
Drought in the U.S. Pacific
…
| Title |
Drought in the U.S. Pacific Northwest |
| Description |
From December to March, snowfall was light in the northwestern United States. Now at winter?s end, the Pacific Northwest is facing ongoing drought. Melting snow feeds the region?s streams and rivers throughout the summer, so if little snow falls, drought ensues. By March 17, 2005, snowpacks in the mountains of Washington, Oregon, Idaho and western Montana were at near-record lows, nearly guaranteeing low water levels on rivers and streams during the summer. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration?s Climate Prediction Center predicts that water levels will be at their lowest levels in 70 years in 2005. See the U.S. Seasonal Drought Outlook [ http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/expert_assessment/seasonal_drought.html ] for more information. The above image illustrates winter conditions in the Northwest. The image shows outgoing longwave radiation (OLR), a measure of the heat emitted from the Earth?s surface. Since clouds are cooler than land or the ocean?s surface, the measurement shows where clouds are. Scientists use this measurement to monitor for drought because a lack of cloud-cover also means a lack of precipitation. The above image is a composite of OLR data collected between December 2004 and February 2005 compared to data collected between 1979 and 1995. Areas that were cloudier than normal are blue, while regions with less cloud cover than normal are red. The Pacific Northwest was uncharacteristically clear between December and February, as indicated by the dark red over the region. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided courtesy of Assaf Anyamba and NOAA National Center for Environmental Prediction. |
|
Drought in the U.S. Pacific
…
| Title |
Drought in the U.S. Pacific Northwest |
| Description |
From December to March, snowfall was light in the northwestern United States. Now at winter?s end, the Pacific Northwest is facing ongoing drought. Melting snow feeds the region?s streams and rivers throughout the summer, so if little snow falls, drought ensues. By March 17, 2005, snowpacks in the mountains of Washington, Oregon, Idaho and western Montana were at near-record lows, nearly guaranteeing low water levels on rivers and streams during the summer. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration?s Climate Prediction Center predicts that water levels will be at their lowest levels in 70 years in 2005. See the U.S. Seasonal Drought Outlook [ http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/expert_assessment/seasonal_drought.html ] for more information. The above image illustrates winter conditions in the Northwest. The image shows outgoing longwave radiation (OLR), a measure of the heat emitted from the Earth?s surface. Since clouds are cooler than land or the ocean?s surface, the measurement shows where clouds are. Scientists use this measurement to monitor for drought because a lack of cloud-cover also means a lack of precipitation. The above image is a composite of OLR data collected between December 2004 and February 2005 compared to data collected between 1979 and 1995. Areas that were cloudier than normal are blue, while regions with less cloud cover than normal are red. The Pacific Northwest was uncharacteristically clear between December and February, as indicated by the dark red over the region. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided courtesy of Assaf Anyamba and NOAA National Center for Environmental Prediction. |
|
Fires Across the United Stat
…
| Title |
Fires Across the United States |
| Description |
This expansive image of the United States was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometers (MODIS) on NASA?s Terra and Aqua satellites. The left hand portion of the image comes from Aqua MODIS observations captured on the afternoon of October 22, 2003, while the right hand part of the image is from Terra MODIS observations captured a few hours earlier. Several geographic regions are experiencing fires, which were detected by the sensors and are marked with red dots. At upper left, fires are still burning across the Northern Rockies, the highest concentration is in Idaho, with additional fires in Montana to its east, and southeastern Washington and northeastern Oregon, to the west. In the Southwest, fires are burning in southern California near Los Angeles (gray patch right at edge of image to the north of the Baja Peninsula), as well as in the arc of mountains running through Arizona. At top center, fires are scattered across the northern Great Plains, from North Dakota and across the United States? border into Canada. Far to the south, dozens more fires are burning in the Mississippi River Valley in Mississippi (against right edge), Louisiana (to the west) and Arkansas (north of Louisiana). The high-resolution image provided above is 2 kilometers per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at MODIS? maximum spatial resolution of 250 meters. Image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC |
|
Fires Across the United Stat
…
| Title |
Fires Across the United States |
| Description |
This expansive image of the United States was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometers (MODIS) on NASA?s Terra and Aqua satellites. The left hand portion of the image comes from Aqua MODIS observations captured on the afternoon of October 22, 2003, while the right hand part of the image is from Terra MODIS observations captured a few hours earlier. Several geographic regions are experiencing fires, which were detected by the sensors and are marked with red dots. At upper left, fires are still burning across the Northern Rockies, the highest concentration is in Idaho, with additional fires in Montana to its east, and southeastern Washington and northeastern Oregon, to the west. In the Southwest, fires are burning in southern California near Los Angeles (gray patch right at edge of image to the north of the Baja Peninsula), as well as in the arc of mountains running through Arizona. At top center, fires are scattered across the northern Great Plains, from North Dakota and across the United States? border into Canada. Far to the south, dozens more fires are burning in the Mississippi River Valley in Mississippi (against right edge), Louisiana (to the west) and Arkansas (north of Louisiana). The high-resolution image provided above is 2 kilometers per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at MODIS? maximum spatial resolution of 250 meters. Image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC |
|
Fires in Idaho
| Title |
Fires in Idaho |
| Description |
In wilderness areas of central Idaho's Salmon River, Bitterroot, and Sawtooth Mountain Ranges, numerous fires were burning in mid-August 2006. When the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite passed overhead on August 14, the sensor detected more than a dozen active fires (locations marked in red) burning in the area. Across the state line in Montana, several fires are visible as well. Although there are no large cities in the area, residences, ranches, communications and power infrastructure, historic and recreational sites, and mining resources are threatened by the various blazes. The remote location and rugged terrain make fires in the area difficult to contain. For more information about the fires in Idaho and the rest of the United States, visit the Website of the National Interagency Fire Center. [ http://www.nifc.gov/information.html ] The high-resolution image provided above has a spatial resolution of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides twice-daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?AERONET_Rimrock ] of the area at additional resolutions. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho
| Title |
Fires in Montana and Idaho |
| Description |
In the northern Rocky Mountains of Idaho and Montana, dozens of large, dangerous wildfires burned tens of thousands of acres in late July and early August 2007. Several communities in Montana were under evacuation on August 1, according to the daily report from the National Interagency Fire Center. [ http://www.nifc.gov/ ] Like much of the United States (with the notable exception of the southern Great Plains [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14356 ]), the Northern Rockies of Montana and Idaho were experiencing moderate to severe drought in late July according to the weekly report from the U.S. Drought Monitor. This image of Montana (with a little bit of Idaho included in the lower-left corner) was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite on July 31, 2007. Locations where the sensor detected actively burning fires are outlined in red. A westerly wind appeared to have been blowing at the time of the image (2:30 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time), and plumes of smoke spread from the mountains over the state's eastern plains. As of August 1, the Meriwether (20,745 acres) and Ahorn (36,311 acres) were the largest fires in the scene, but the Skyland Fire had grown most rapidly in the previous 24 hours, it grew by an estimated 7,505 acres to a total of 16,055 acres. NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] and Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellites both collect fire detection data over the United States at least twice a day, once in daylight and once at night. Through a partnership between NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center's MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] the University of Maryland, [ http://maps.geog.umd.edu/firms//default.asp ] and the Remote Sensing Application Center [ http://www.fs.fed.us/eng/rsac/ ] of the USDA Forest Service, the satellite observations are relayed over the Internet to the Forest Service, which maps them. [ http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us/ ] The Forest Service and its partners use the MODIS fire maps to help them make strategic decisions about where firefighting resources are needed at a national level. The large image provided above has a spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides twice-daily [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?AERONET_Missoula/ ] images of the region in additional resolutions. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho
| Title |
Fires in Montana and Idaho |
| Description |
Dozens of large fires were raging across the Northern Rockies in Idaho and Montana in mid-August 2007. This image of the area was captured on Sunday, August 12, at 2:55 p.m. U.S. Mountain Daylight Time by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite. Dozens of fires (marked in red) were billowing out clouds of gray-brown smoke that spread across both states. Fires appeared especially active in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness area south of the Salmon River. According to the August 12 report from the National Interagency Fire Center, [ http://www.nifc.gov/fire_info.html ] 31 large fires were burning more than 753,000 acres in the two states, and activity was predicted to increase in the coming days as sustained winds of 15-20 miles per hour were predicted to race across the Great Basin and Northern Rockies. The large image provided above has a spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides twice-daily [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?AERONET_Missoula ] images of the region in additional resolutions. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho
| Title |
Fires in Montana and Idaho |
| Description |
Columns of thick smoke unfurled from forest fires burning across Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming and spread eastward across the plains at the foothills of the Northern Rocky Mountains on August 13, 2007. This image of the area was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite at 2:00 p.m. local time (U.S. Mountain Daylight Time). Locations where the sensor detected active fire are outlined in red. Fires are especially active in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness Area south of Idaho's Salmon River. Gray-brown smoke cuts a diagonal swath across the center of the image. Smoke from these fires has been crossing the United States off and on throughout August, degrading air quality as far away as the East Coast. The large image provided above has a spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides twice-daily [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?AERONET_Missoula ] images of the region in additional resolutions. NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center. |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho
| Title |
Fires in Montana and Idaho |
| Description |
In the Northern Rockies of Idaho and Montana, conditions were dry in July and August 2007. Dozens of large forest fires were burning in the area's remote, rugged terrain, much of which is federally designated wilderness area. This image of the area was captured on August 1, 2007, by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite. Places where MODIS detected actively burning fire are outlined in red. Dozens of large fires filled the skies with thick smoke. According to the August 1 report from the National Interagency Fire Center, [ http://www.nifc.gov/fire_info/nfn.htm ] 11 large fires totaling more than 880,000 thousand acres were burning in Idaho. Five of these had been designated "Wildland Fire Use" fires, which means they will be allowed to burn according to pre-existing natural resource management plans. Because the forests of the Northern Rockies are adapted to naturally ignited fires, some fires must be allowed to burn to maintain the ecosystem in a healthy state. The large image provided above has a spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides twice-daily [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?AERONET_Missoula ] images of the region in additional resolutions. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho
| Title |
Fires in Montana and Idaho |
| Description |
Intense wildfires (location in red) raged in Idaho and Montana when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image on August 4, 2007. According to reports from the National Interagency Fire Center [ http://www.nifc.gov/fire_info/nfn.htm ] on August 7, Idaho and Montana each had 14 large fires burning, with windy weather predicted to increase fire behavior in the area in subsequent days. In Montana, the fires had affected more than 255,000 acres, in Idaho, fires had affected nearly 400,000 acres. These fires produced smoke [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14434 ] that blanketed much of the United States. You can download a 250-meter-resolution KMZ file of the fires in Montana and Idaho [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/Archive/Aug2007/montana_amo_2007216.kmz ] suitable for use with Google Earth. [ http://earth.google.com/ ] NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] team. |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho
| Title |
Fires in Montana and Idaho |
| Description |
According to the September 4 report from the National Interagency Fire Center, 24 large fires burned in Montana and Idaho in early September 2007. Many of these fires had been burning in the states' remote, mountainous terrain for more than a month. Throughout the summer, the fires occasionally produced thick clouds of smoke that spread across the Great Plains and as far as the East Coast. This image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite shows the fires (red outlines) on September 3, 2007. The large image provided above has a spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides twice-daily [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?AERONET_Missoula ] images of the region in additional resolutions. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho
| Title |
Fires in Montana and Idaho |
| Description |
More than a dozen large fires (some of them fire complexes that included more than one fire) were burning in Idaho and Montana on September 12, 2007, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite passed overhead and captured this image. Fires (outlined in red) have been burning in these areas since late July. [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14422 ] Fire activity has flared up and then died down periodically, and plumes of smoke [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14434 ] have crossed the country to the East Coast off and on. The large image provided above has a spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides twice-daily [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?AERONET_Missoula/ ] images of the region in additional resolutions. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
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School Fire in Washington
| Title |
School Fire in Washington |
| Description |
In southeastern Washington, the School Fire was raging through the Umatilla National Forest about 16 miles south of the town of Pomery. According to reports from the National Interagency Fire Center on August 8, 2005, the fire had grown to 32,000 acres and was not at all contained. This image of the region was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA's Aqua satellite on August 7. It shows thick smoke pouring from the burning forest and spreading across Idaho and into Montana. Areas where MODIS detected active fire are outlined in red. The high-resolution image provided above is 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at additional resolutions. NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, Goddard Space Flight Center |
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Smoke from fires in Idaho an
…
| Title |
Smoke from fires in Idaho and Montana |
| Description |
Some things are so large that the perspective from space is necessary to appreciate them. One of those things is the long-distance impact that pollutants like smoke or dust can have on air quality. On August 4, 2007, for example, fires raging in Montana and Idaho polluted the air over much of the United States. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) onboard NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image of the smoke and fires on the afternoon of August 4. The lower image is a mosaic of four separate flyovers (separated by faint diagonal lines), while the top image is a close-up view of the smoke and haze along the northeastern seaboard. Strong winds on August 4 created uncontrollable firestorms that forced the evacuation of at least two communities in Montana, reported the Missoulian. Fires in Montana and Idaho are marked with red dots in the lower image and are more clearly visible in the large image. In addition to fueling the flames, the winds blew dense plumes of smoke northeast. The thickest plumes rise from the fires in northwestern Montana. By the time the smoke reached eastern Montana, the plumes were no longer distinct. The air was clouded with a soupy, gray haze that curves north into Canada. High-level winds pushed the smoke south over the western Great Lakes, and into the central and southern United States. From the bank of clouds over Illinois to the Gulf of Mexico, the air was white-gray with haze. From the central United States, the plume of pollution snaked over the Mid-Atlantic States and the Chesapeake Bay to the Atlantic Ocean, where it turned north and flowed along the coast. Some additional haze may line the coast south of Cape Hatteras, but reflected sunlight has turned the ocean's surface into a mirror, effectively masking the presence of any haze. The top image provides a closer view of the haze over the Atlantic Ocean from the Delmarva Peninsula along the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay, to the Gulf of Maine, north of Cape Cod. By this point, smoke from the western wildfires is probably only one component of the haze. High temperatures and stagnant air also amplified the impact of urban pollution, creating Code Orange [ http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=static.aqi#unh ] air quality conditions, which are unhealthy for sensitive groups such as active children or adults or individuals with respiratory ailments. The jetstream—the fast-moving, high-level winds that steer weather systems—is defined by the stark boundary between the hazy air over the Mid-Atlantic and the clear air over New England. Jetstream winds are clearly blocking the smoke from traveling north. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC, which provides daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/fas/ ] of the United States in a clickable map. |
|
Smoke from fires in Idaho an
…
| Title |
Smoke from fires in Idaho and Montana |
| Description |
Some things are so large that the perspective from space is necessary to appreciate them. One of those things is the long-distance impact that pollutants like smoke or dust can have on air quality. On August 4, 2007, for example, fires raging in Montana and Idaho polluted the air over much of the United States. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) onboard NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image of the smoke and fires on the afternoon of August 4. The lower image is a mosaic of four separate flyovers (separated by faint diagonal lines), while the top image is a close-up view of the smoke and haze along the northeastern seaboard. Strong winds on August 4 created uncontrollable firestorms that forced the evacuation of at least two communities in Montana, reported the Missoulian. Fires in Montana and Idaho are marked with red dots in the lower image and are more clearly visible in the large image. In addition to fueling the flames, the winds blew dense plumes of smoke northeast. The thickest plumes rise from the fires in northwestern Montana. By the time the smoke reached eastern Montana, the plumes were no longer distinct. The air was clouded with a soupy, gray haze that curves north into Canada. High-level winds pushed the smoke south over the western Great Lakes, and into the central and southern United States. From the bank of clouds over Illinois to the Gulf of Mexico, the air was white-gray with haze. From the central United States, the plume of pollution snaked over the Mid-Atlantic States and the Chesapeake Bay to the Atlantic Ocean, where it turned north and flowed along the coast. Some additional haze may line the coast south of Cape Hatteras, but reflected sunlight has turned the ocean's surface into a mirror, effectively masking the presence of any haze. The top image provides a closer view of the haze over the Atlantic Ocean from the Delmarva Peninsula along the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay, to the Gulf of Maine, north of Cape Cod. By this point, smoke from the western wildfires is probably only one component of the haze. High temperatures and stagnant air also amplified the impact of urban pollution, creating Code Orange [ http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=static.aqi#unh ] air quality conditions, which are unhealthy for sensitive groups such as active children or adults or individuals with respiratory ailments. The jetstream—the fast-moving, high-level winds that steer weather systems—is defined by the stark boundary between the hazy air over the Mid-Atlantic and the clear air over New England. Jetstream winds are clearly blocking the smoke from traveling north. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC, which provides daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/fas/ ] of the United States in a clickable map. |
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Smoke from fires in Idaho an
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| Title |
Smoke from fires in Idaho and Montana |
| Description |
On August 13, 2007, while docked to the International Space Station (ISS), the crew members of Shuttle Mission STS-118 and ISS Expedition 15 reported seeing the smoke plumes from wide-spread fires [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3? img_id=14443 ] across Idaho and Montana. The crew photographed and downlinked images of isolated plumes (top image) and regional views of the smoke (bottom image) from different perspectives. Strong westerly winds were driving the smoke eastward. The close-up view shows the WH Complex Fire in southern Montana, which was burning in Gallatin National Forest. As of Friday, August 17, the National Interagency Fire Center [ http://www.nifc.gov/fire_info.html ] estimated its size as 25,400 acres, and it was only 5 percent contained. The rugged topography that makes firefighting in the area so difficult is highlighted by shadows created by the oblique (from the side) perspective from which the astronauts took the photo. The plume has topography of its own, some plumes towering above others, casting dark shadows. The regional view was taken looking westward toward the horizon. It shows fires not only in Montana, but also fires to the south in Wyoming, and to the northwest in Idaho. South (to the left) of the WH Complex Fire are the Columbine 1 Fire in Yellowstone National Park (18,500 acres and 0 percent contained), and the Hardscrabble Fire in Bridger-Teton National Forest (3,074 acres and 40 percent contained). An even broader regional view of the extent of the fires was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] sensor onboard NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite on August 12, 2007, [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3? img_id=17738 ] the day before these images were taken by astronauts onboard the ISS. Featured astronaut photographs ISS015-E-22274 [ http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/ scripts/sseop/photo.pl? mission=ISS015&roll=E&frame=22274&QueryResultsFile=118730112526521.tsv ] and ISS015-E-22276 [ http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/scripts/sseop/ photo.pl? mission=ISS015&roll=E&frame=22276&QueryResultsFile=118730112526521.tsv ] were acquired by the ISS 15 crew [ http://www.nasa.gov/ mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition15/index.html ]on August 13, 2007, with a Nikon D2X digital camera using a 24–120 mm lens at 95 and 40 mm focal length respectively. They are provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations experiment and the Image Science & Analysis Laboratory, Johnson Space Center. The image in this article has been cropped and enhanced to improve contrast. The International Space Station Program [ http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/home/ index.html ], supports the laboratory to help astronauts take pictures of Earth that will be of the greatest value to scientists and the public, and to make those images freely available on the Internet. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA/JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth. [ http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/ ] |
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Smoke over Montana
| Title |
Smoke over Montana |
| Description |
Smoke sprawled over much of Montana on July 29, 2007. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite captured this image the same day. This picture shows smoke mingling with clouds over Wyoming, Montana, Alberta, and Saskatchewan. The smoke appears especially thick where the borders of Montana, Alberta, and Saskatchewan meet. The smoke can be distinguished from the clouds by its duller color and more diffuse outlines. As smoke collected over eastern Montana, wildfires burned in the western part of the state, as well as Idaho. The fires were the most likely source of the smoke. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC. The Rapid Response Team provides daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA2/ ] of this region. |
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Smoke over the Dakotas
| Title |
Smoke over the Dakotas |
| Description |
Thanks to fires [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14443 ] in western Montana and Idaho in August 2007, pollutants traveled eastward across much of the United States, affecting air quality hundreds of miles from the flames. According to the U.S. Air Quality (Smog Blog) at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, air quality [ http://alg.umbc.edu/usaq/archives/002351.html ] along the U.S. East Coast suffered from the northwestern fires. This image tracks the smoke east from Idaho and Montana across North and South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin by showing carbon monoxide concentrations, one component of the smoke, as observed by the Measurements Of Pollution In The Troposphere (MOPITT) instrument aboard NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite between August 1 and August 20, 2007. The colors represent the carbon monoxide concentrations in parts per billion by volume at an altitude of approximately 3 kilometers (1.9 miles). Lowest concentrations appear in yellow and highest concentrations appear in red. Black indicates areas where persistent cloud cover prevented thorough measurements. An arc of high carbon monoxide levels reaches from central Idaho, through Montana, and dips southward across South Dakota. This area matches smoke plumes that were visible across the area in mid-August. Concentrations remain high as far east as the Great Lakes region. Along the top left edge of the image, patches of dark red across Alberta and Saskatchewan are probably also the result of forest fire activity in August. Fires produce large amounts of carbon monoxide, which remains in the atmosphere for about two months on average. By contrast, the gray particles that make the smoke visible in the air disappear after about a week. Because carbon monoxide stays in the atmosphere so long, scientists can track a plume of smoke much farther by measuring carbon monoxide than by looking for visible signs of the smoke. Compared to the particles, carbon monoxide also acts more like other gaseous pollutants in the smoke that might be hard to measure directly. As a result, measurements of carbon monoxide provide an estimate of how much of these pollutants were emitted by the fires. In addition to revealing pollution from a single event, the view of carbon monoxide from space gives remote-sensing scientists a way to trace the global transport of smoke-related pollution. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data provided by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the University of Toronto MOPITT Teams [ http://www.eos.ucar.edu/mopitt/ ] |
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Fires in the Northern Rockie
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| Title |
Fires in the Northern Rockies |
| Description |
Dozens of large fires were burning across the Rocky Mountains in Canada (top), Montana (bottom right), and Idaho (bottom center) on August 14, 2003. This image shows smoke plumes trailing from the fires, which were detected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Aqua satellite and are marked with red dots in the image. The high-resolution image provided above is 500 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at MODIS? maximum spatial resolution of 250 meters. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC |
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Fires in the Northern Rockie
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| Title |
Fires in the Northern Rockies |
| Description |
Fires across the Northern Rockies continued to burn on August 21, 2003. This image of the dozens of large fires (marked in yellow) was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Terra satellite. The lake in the top left quadrant of the image is Flathead Lake in northwest Montana. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC |
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Fires in the Northern Rockie
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| Title |
Fires in the Northern Rockies |
| Description |
More than 20 large fires are burning in the Northern Rockies region of Montana and Idaho as of September 4, 2003. Nearly half a million acres in the U.S. have been affected by the fires, which are marked in red in this Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) image from the Terra satellite on September 2. Additional fires have been burning for weeks in the Rockies in British Columbia and Alberta, Canada, to the north. Image courtesy Jesse Allen, based on data from the MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC |
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Fires in the Northern Rockie
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| Title |
Fires in the Northern Rockies |
| Description |
More than 20 large fires are burning in the Northern Rockies region of Montana and Idaho as of September 4, 2003. Nearly half a million acres in the U.S. have been affected by the fires, which are marked in red in this Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) image from the Terra satellite on September 2. Additional fires have been burning for weeks in the Rockies in British Columbia and Alberta, Canada, to the north. Image courtesy Jesse Allen, based on data from the MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC |
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Fires in the Northern Rockie
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| Title |
Fires in the Northern Rockies |
| Description |
On September 6, 2003, dozens of large fires were burning in the northern Rockies of British Columbia (top), Montana (bottom right), Idaho (bottom center), and Washington (bottom left). In Montana, a line of fires stretches southward from the U.S.-Canada border for 190 kilometers (118 miles), creating a wall of smoke that hangs over the Lewis Range Mountains east of Flathead Lake. This image of the fires (marked in red) was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Aqua satellite on September 6. The high-resolution image provided above is 500 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at MODIS' maximum spatial resolution of 250 meters. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC |
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Fires in the Northern Rockie
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| Title |
Fires in the Northern Rockies |
| Description |
In the Northern Rockies in mid-August 2005, more than a dozen fires were burning across Washington, Idaho, and Montana. This image of the tinder-dry, flammable region was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite on August 15. Locations where MODIS detected active fires are marked in red. Among the large fires are the School Fire [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13040 ] in Washington, the Blackberry and China Ten Fires in Idaho, and the I-80 and Rockin Fires in Montana. For information on the threats these fires pose to residences, infrastructure, and natural and cultural resources, read the daily situation report [ http://www.nifc.gov/nicc/sitreprt.pdf ] for August 16, published by the National Interagency Fire Center. 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. [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA1/2005227/ ] NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
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Fires in the Northern Rockie
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| Title |
Fires in the Northern Rockies |
| Description |
As September approached, fires continued to burn in the Bitterroot Mountains along the border of Idaho and Montana, as well as in other National Forests in the two states. When this image of the area was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite on August 29, 2005, numerous large fires were billowing smoke to the north and east. A line of clouds along the left edge of the image could be an indication of an approaching weather system, which was forecasted to bring some cool weather to the Northern Rockies. Active fire locations that MODIS detected are outlined in red. For more information about the fires in the Northern Rockies, read the daily situation report [ http://www.nifc.gov/nicc/sitreprt.pdf ] from the National Interagency Fire Center. 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. [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?AERONET_Rimrock/2005241/ ] NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
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Fires in the Northern Rockie
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| Title |
Fires in the Northern Rockies |
| Description |
In the northern Rockies, the Bitterroot Range Mountains along the border of Idaho and Montana were experiencing severe drought in late August. Fires were burning when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite passed over the region and captured this image on August 27, 2005. The image centers on Idaho County, where MODIS detected numerous "hot spots," which are outlined in red. The smokiest of the blazes is the Frank Church Fire. The high-resolution image provided above has a spatial resolution of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides this image at additional resolutions. [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA1/2005239/ ] NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ]Goddard Space Flight Center |
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Fires in the Western United
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| Title |
Fires in the Western United States |
| Description |
In early September 2006, firefighters in the western United States had their hands full. This image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite shows large wildfires (red dots) burning in Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Montana, and Nevada on September 5. Some clouds are scattered across the area, some of them likely building into afternoon thunderstorms, which may help or hinder firefighters, depending on how much rain, wind, or lightning the storms produce. Several of the largest fires are labeled in the image, and three are shown in the close-up images below the wide-area image at top. The National Interagency Fire Center [ http://www.nifc.gov/information.html ] report from September 6 stated that the 32,019-acre Bar Complex Fire in California was threatening structures and a watershed, the 67,500-acre Amazon Fire and the 100,000-acre Sheep Fire were threatening structures, livestock, fisheries, power lines, mines, and grazing lands, and the 92,225-acre Columbia Complex Fire was threatening residences, a ski area, a wind energy site, and commercial resources. The high-resolution image provided above has a spatial resolution of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides daily images of sub-sections of the entire United States at additional resolutions via a clickable map. [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/ ] NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
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Fires in the Western United
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| Title |
Fires in the Western United States |
| Description |
Thick, white smoke seeps through the valleys of the Rocky Mountains ranges that run through Idaho, Washington, and Oregon in this photo-like image taken on September 12, 2006. At the time, firefighters were monitoring 29 wild fires in the three states, said the National Interagency Fire Center. [ http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/nfn.html ] Many of the fires were started by lightning, as suggested by the clusters of fires (red dots) seen in this image. The image was taken in the early afternoon by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite. Most of the fires are burning in the deep-green, pine-covered mountains. Sage, scrub, and grass-covered desert is tan, while agricultural land creates a pattern of tiny, bright green and gold dots. Between January 1 and September 12, 2006, a total of 8,653,883 acres of land had burned in the United States, exceeding the totals for the same period of any other year since 2000. Many of the fires that burned in remote areas were simply monitored as part of a long-term land-management strategy, but those that threatened structures were actively combated. Some of the large fires shown here include the Columbia Complex, [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13804 ] which had burned 103,100 acres and was 80 percent contained on September 12, the Elkhorn Complex, which had burned 870 acres and was 15 percent contained, the Payette Complex, which had burned 10,729 acres, the South Fork Complex, 41,600 acres and 20 percent contained, the Boundary Complex, 22,785 acres and 5 percent contained, the Red Mountain Fire, 32,825 acres and 30 percent contained, and the Rattlesnake Complex, 37,421 acres and 30 percent contained. Several other large fires burned in the western United States on September 12. The Derby Fire [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13832 ] in western Montana (just beyond the right edge of the image) had threatened homes and forced hundred of evacuations in early September. By September 12, it had burned 207,644 acres and was 70 percent contained, said the National Interagency Fire Center. The Day Fire [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13848 ] was burning in Los Padres National Forest about 40 miles north of Los Angeles, California. Its thick smoke temporarily closed Interstate 5 on September 12. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] team. |
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Fires in Western Canada
| Title |
Fires in Western Canada |
| Description |
On August 1, 2003, dozens of large fires were burning across western North America in Canada (top half of image) and the United States (bottom half). Huge plumes of smoke were streaming northeastward from massive fires in Canada's British Columbia (left) and Alberta (right) provinces, while across the international border, fires were burning in (left to right) Washington, Idaho, and Montana. This image was acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Aqua satellite. The high-resolution image provided above is 500 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at MODIS' maximum spatial resolution of 250 meters. Image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC |
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Fires in Western Canada
| Title |
Fires in Western Canada |
| Description |
The large fires currently burning in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States are producing a significant amount of air pollution, as indicated by the elevated levels of carbon monoxide over the region. This false-color image shows the concentrations of carbon monoxide at an altitude of roughly 3 km (700 millibars) in the atmosphere. These data were taken by the Measurements Of Pollution In The Troposphere (MOPITT) instrument aboard NASA?s Terra satellite for the period Aug. 1-7, 2003. The colors represent the mixing ratios of carbon monoxide in the air, given in parts per billion by volume. The gray areas in the image show where no data were collected, either due to persistent cloud cover or gaps between satellite viewing swaths. Carbon monoxide is produced as a result of incomplete combustion during burning. It is important to scientists due to its impact on the chemistry in the lower atmosphere. Carbon monoxide is a good indicator of air pollution and its presence adversely affects the atmosphere's ability to cleanse itself. The regions of high carbon monoxide are observed downwind of the fires currently burning in Canada's British Columbia (left) and Alberta (right) provinces, while across the border in the United States, intense plumes of carbon monoxide are being emitted from the fires burning in Idaho and Montana. Because carbon monoxide is persistent in the air for several weeks, it clearly shows the transport of pollution plumes from the region of the fires northeastwards over Canada. Image courtesy the NCAR [ http://www.eos.ucar.edu/mopitt/ ] and University of Toronto [ http://www.atmosp.physics.utoronto.ca/MOPITT/home.html ] MOPITT Teams |
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Fires in Western Canada
| Title |
Fires in Western Canada |
| Description |
Dozens of large fires were burning across British Columbia, Canada, on August 20, 2003. The fires (marked with yellow) have forced hundreds of people to evacuate their homes and put thousands on evacuation alert. This image of the fires was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Aqua satellite. British Columbia is at top left, with Alberta to the east. At the bottom are Washington, Idaho, and Montana. The high-resolution image provided above is 500 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at MODIS' maximum spatial resolution of 250 meters. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC |
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Fires in Montana and Idaho:
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nasa, nasanaturalhazards
In the Northern Rockies of I
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idaho_AMO_2007213
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-01 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
idaho_AMO_2007213 |
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Fires in Montana and Idaho:
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
In the northern Rocky Mounta
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Montana_AMO_2007212
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-07-31 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
Montana_AMO_2007212 |
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Fires in Montana and Idaho:
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nasa, nasanaturalhazards
According to the September 4
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Missoula_AMO_2007246
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-03 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
Missoula_AMO_2007246 |
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Haze over the Great Lakes: N
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nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Haze collected over the Grea
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grlakes_tmo_2007212
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-07-31 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
grlakes_tmo_2007212 |
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Fires in Montana and Idaho:
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nasa, nasanaturalhazards
More than a dozen large fire
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ge_18834
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-12 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ge_18834 |
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Fires in Montana and Idaho:
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
More than a dozen large fire
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ge_18834
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-12 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ge_18834 |
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Fires in Idaho: Natural Haza
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nasa, nasanaturalhazards
In wilderness areas of centr
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Rimrock_AMO_2006226
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2006-08-14 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
Rimrock_AMO_2006226 |
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Smoke from fires in Idaho an
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nasa, nasanaturalhazards
* eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/ima
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USA_AMO_2007216
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-04 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
USA_AMO_2007216 |
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Smoke over Montana: Natural
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nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Smoke sprawled over much of
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montana_amo_2007210
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-07-29 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
montana_amo_2007210 |
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Fires in Montana and Idaho:
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nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Intense wildfires (location
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montana_amo_2007216
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-04 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
montana_amo_2007216 |
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