|
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| Photo Description |
NASA and the U.S. Forest Service are testing newly developed technologies to improve wildfire imaging and mapping capabilities ion the Western States Fire Mission. From mid-August through September, 2007, NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center flew its remotely piloted Ikhana, a General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Predator B unmanned aircraft system adapted to civil missions, in a series of missions to demonstrate the capabilities of sophisticated new thermal-infrared imaging sensors and real-time data communications equipment developed at NASA's Ames Research Center. The sensor is capable of peering through thick smoke and haze to record hot spots and the progression of wildfires over a lengthy period. The first flight of the series Aug. 16, 2007 captured images of California wildfires, including the huge Zaca Fire in Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. Other flights in the series were to take the aircraft to image wildfires burning in the Pacific Northwest during missions lasting more than 20 hours. The data is overlaid on Google Earth maps and downlinked in near-real time to the Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, and made available to fire incident commanders to assist them in allocating their fire-fighting resources. |
| Photo Date |
August 9, 2007 |
|
| Photo Description |
NASA and the U.S. Forest Service are testing newly developed technologies to improve wildfire imaging and mapping capabilities ion the Western States Fire Mission. From mid-August through September, 2007, NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center flew its remotely piloted Ikhana, a General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Predator B unmanned aircraft system adapted to civil missions, in a series of missions to demonstrate the capabilities of sophisticated new thermal-infrared imaging sensors and real-time data communications equipment developed at NASA's Ames Research Center. The sensor is capable of peering through thick smoke and haze to record hot spots and the progression of wildfires over a lengthy period. The first flight of the series Aug. 16, 2007 captured images of California wildfires, including the huge Zaca Fire in Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. Other flights in the series were to take the aircraft to image wildfires burning in the Pacific Northwest during missions lasting more than 20 hours. The data is overlaid on Google Earth maps and downlinked in near-real time to the Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, and made available to fire incident commanders to assist them in allocating their fire-fighting resources. |
| Photo Date |
August 9, 2007 |
|
| Photo Description |
NASA and the U.S. Forest Service are testing newly developed technologies to improve wildfire imaging and mapping capabilities ion the Western States Fire Mission. From mid-August through September, 2007, NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center flew its remotely piloted Ikhana, a General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Predator B unmanned aircraft system adapted to civil missions, in a series of missions to demonstrate the capabilities of sophisticated new thermal-infrared imaging sensors and real-time data communications equipment developed at NASA's Ames Research Center. The sensor is capable of peering through thick smoke and haze to record hot spots and the progression of wildfires over a lengthy period. The first flight of the series Aug. 16, 2007 captured images of California wildfires, including the huge Zaca Fire in Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. Other flights in the series were to take the aircraft to image wildfires burning in the Pacific Northwest during missions lasting more than 20 hours. The data is overlaid on Google Earth maps and downlinked in near-real time to the Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, and made available to fire incident commanders to assist them in allocating their fire-fighting resources. |
| Photo Date |
August 9, 2007 |
|
| Photo Description |
NASA and the U.S. Forest Service are testing newly developed technologies to improve wildfire imaging and mapping capabilities ion the Western States Fire Mission. From mid-August through September, 2007, NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center flew its remotely piloted Ikhana, a General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Predator B unmanned aircraft system adapted to civil missions, in a series of missions to demonstrate the capabilities of sophisticated new thermal-infrared imaging sensors and real-time data communications equipment developed at NASA's Ames Research Center. The sensor is capable of peering through thick smoke and haze to record hot spots and the progression of wildfires over a lengthy period. The first flight of the series Aug. 16, 2007 captured images of California wildfires, including the huge Zaca Fire in Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. Other flights in the series were to take the aircraft to image wildfires burning in the Pacific Northwest during missions lasting more than 20 hours. The data is overlaid on Google Earth maps and downlinked in near-real time to the Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, and made available to fire incident commanders to assist them in allocating their fire-fighting resources. |
| Photo Date |
August 9, 2007 |
|
| Photo Description |
The instruments that make up the Ames Autonomous Module Scanner (AMS) that provided precise thermal-infrared imaging during the Western States Fire Mission in 2007 are detailed in this photo of the AMS as mounted on Ikhana's pod tray. The large foil-covered foam-insulated box at left covers the pressure vessel containing the data system computers and other electronics. The round white-topped assembly is the scan head, including the scan mirror, folded telescope, blackbody references, spectrometer and detectors. Two pressure boxes visible at the forward end of the tray contain the Applanix POS/AV precision navigation subsystem (black) and the power distributor including circuit breakers and ancillary wiring, scan motor controller and the blackbody reference temperature controller (blue). |
| Project Description |
NASA and the U.S. Forest Service are testing newly developed technologies to improve wildfire imaging and mapping capabilities ion the Western States Fire Mission. From mid-August through September, 2007, NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center flew its remotely piloted Ikhana, a General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Predator B unmanned aircraft system adapted to civil missions, in a series of missions to demonstrate the capabilities of sophisticated new thermal-infrared imaging sensors and real-time data communications equipment developed at NASA's Ames Research Center. The sensor is capable of peering through thick smoke and haze to record hot spots and the progression of wildfires over a lengthy period. The first flight of the series Aug. 16, 2007 captured images of California wildfires, including the huge Zaca Fire in Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. Other flights in the series were to take the aircraft to image wildfires burning in the Pacific Northwest during missions lasting more than 20 hours. The data is overlaid on Google Earth maps and downlinked in near-real time to the Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, and made available to fire incident commanders to assist them in allocating their fire-fighting resources. |
| Photo Date |
September 13, 2007 |
|
| Photo Description |
NASA Ames engineer Ted Hildum checks out the thermal-infrared scanner computer before it is loaded on NASA's Ikhana unmanned aircraft. |
| Project Description |
In response to a request from the California Office of Emergency Services and the National Interagency Fire Center, NASA flew an aircraft equipped with sophisticated infrared imaging equipment in October, 2007, to assist firefighters battling several of the Southern California wildfires. The Ikhana unmanned aircraft system, a Predator B modified for civil science and research missions, was launched from its base at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base. It flew over the major blazes burning in the Lake Arrowhead and Running Springs areas and down into San Diego County to image wildfires that raged in that area. The aircraft is controlled remotely by pilots in a ground control station at NASA Dryden. The Ikhana was carrying the Autonomous Modular Scanner, a thermal-infrared imaging system developed at NASA's Ames Research Center in Northern California. The system is capable of peering through heavy smoke and darkness to see hot spots, flames and temperature differences, processing the imagery on-board, and then transmitting that information in near real time so it can aid fire incident commanders in allocating their firefighting resources. The images are transmitted through a communications satellite to NASA Ames where the imagery is placed on an Ames Web site, combined with Google Earth maps, and then transmitted to the interagency fire center in Boise, Idaho, where it is then made available to incident commanders in the field. The system was validated recently during a series of wildfire imaging demonstration missions conducted by NASA and the U.S. Forest Service in August and September. |
| Photo Date |
October 23, 2007 |
|
| Photo Description |
NASA Dryden's Ikhana ground crewmen Gus Carreno and James Smith load the thermal-infrared imaging scanner pallet into the Ikhana's underwing payload pod. |
| Project Description |
In response to a request from the California Office of Emergency Services and the National Interagency Fire Center, NASA flew an aircraft equipped with sophisticated infrared imaging equipment in October, 2007, to assist firefighters battling several of the Southern California wildfires. The Ikhana unmanned aircraft system, a Predator B modified for civil science and research missions, was launched from its base at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base. It flew over the major blazes burning in the Lake Arrowhead and Running Springs areas and down into San Diego County to image wildfires that raged in that area. The aircraft is controlled remotely by pilots in a ground control station at NASA Dryden. The Ikhana was carrying the Autonomous Modular Scanner, a thermal-infrared imaging system developed at NASA's Ames Research Center in Northern California. The system is capable of peering through heavy smoke and darkness to see hot spots, flames and temperature differences, processing the imagery on-board, and then transmitting that information in near real time so it can aid fire incident commanders in allocating their firefighting resources. The images are transmitted through a communications satellite to NASA Ames where the imagery is placed on an Ames Web site, combined with Google Earth maps, and then transmitted to the interagency fire center in Boise, Idaho, where it is then made available to incident commanders in the field. The system was validated recently during a series of wildfire imaging demonstration missions conducted by NASA and the U.S. Forest Service in August and September. |
| Photo Date |
October 23, 2007 |
|
| Photo Description |
NASA research pilot Mark Pestana flies the Ikhana unmanned aircraft remotely from the ground control station at NASA Dryden. |
| Project Description |
In response to a request from the California Office of Emergency Services and the National Interagency Fire Center, NASA flew an aircraft equipped with sophisticated infrared imaging equipment in October, 2007, to assist firefighters battling several of the Southern California wildfires. The Ikhana unmanned aircraft system, a Predator B modified for civil science and research missions, was launched from its base at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base. It flew over the major blazes burning in the Lake Arrowhead and Running Springs areas and down into San Diego County to image wildfires that raged in that area. The aircraft is controlled remotely by pilots in a ground control station at NASA Dryden. The Ikhana was carrying the Autonomous Modular Scanner, a thermal-infrared imaging system developed at NASA's Ames Research Center in Northern California. The system is capable of peering through heavy smoke and darkness to see hot spots, flames and temperature differences, processing the imagery on-board, and then transmitting that information in near real time so it can aid fire incident commanders in allocating their firefighting resources. The images are transmitted through a communications satellite to NASA Ames where the imagery is placed on an Ames Web site, combined with Google Earth maps, and then transmitted to the interagency fire center in Boise, Idaho, where it is then made available to incident commanders in the field. The system was validated recently during a series of wildfire imaging demonstration missions conducted by NASA and the U.S. Forest Service in August and September. |
| Photo Date |
October 24, 2007 |
|
| Photo Description |
NASA Ames engineers Sally Buechel and Ted Hildum prepare to load the Autonomous Modular Scanner into the Ikhana unmanned aircraft's payload pod. |
| Project Description |
In response to a request from the California Office of Emergency Services and the National Interagency Fire Center, NASA flew an aircraft equipped with sophisticated infrared imaging equipment in October, 2007, to assist firefighters battling several of the Southern California wildfires. The Ikhana unmanned aircraft system, a Predator B modified for civil science and research missions, was launched from its base at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base. It flew over the major blazes burning in the Lake Arrowhead and Running Springs areas and down into San Diego County to image wildfires that raged in that area. The aircraft is controlled remotely by pilots in a ground control station at NASA Dryden. The Ikhana was carrying the Autonomous Modular Scanner, a thermal-infrared imaging system developed at NASA's Ames Research Center in Northern California. The system is capable of peering through heavy smoke and darkness to see hot spots, flames and temperature differences, processing the imagery on-board, and then transmitting that information in near real time so it can aid fire incident commanders in allocating their firefighting resources. The images are transmitted through a communications satellite to NASA Ames where the imagery is placed on an Ames Web site, combined with Google Earth maps, and then transmitted to the interagency fire center in Boise, Idaho, where it is then made available to incident commanders in the field. The system was validated recently during a series of wildfire imaging demonstration missions conducted by NASA and the U.S. Forest Service in August and September. |
| Photo Date |
October 23, 2007 |
|
| Photo Description |
With smoke from the Lake Arrowhead area fires streaming in the background, NASA's Ikhana unmanned aircraft heads out on a Southern California wildfires imaging mission. |
| Project Description |
In response to a request from the California Office of Emergency Services and the National Interagency Fire Center, NASA flew an aircraft equipped with sophisticated infrared imaging equipment in October, 2007, to assist firefighters battling several of the Southern California wildfires. The Ikhana unmanned aircraft system, a Predator B modified for civil science and research missions, was launched from its base at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base. It flew over the major blazes burning in the Lake Arrowhead and Running Springs areas and down into San Diego County to image wildfires that raged in that area. The aircraft is controlled remotely by pilots in a ground control station at NASA Dryden. The Ikhana was carrying the Autonomous Modular Scanner, a thermal-infrared imaging system developed at NASA's Ames Research Center in Northern California. The system is capable of peering through heavy smoke and darkness to see hot spots, flames and temperature differences, processing the imagery on-board, and then transmitting that information in near real time so it can aid fire incident commanders in allocating their firefighting resources. The images are transmitted through a communications satellite to NASA Ames where the imagery is placed on an Ames Web site, combined with Google Earth maps, and then transmitted to the interagency fire center in Boise, Idaho, where it is then made available to incident commanders in the field. The system was validated recently during a series of wildfire imaging demonstration missions conducted by NASA and the U.S. Forest Service in August and September. |
| Photo Date |
October 24, 2007 |
|
| Photo Description |
With smoke from the Lake Arrowhead area fires streaming in the background, NASA's Ikhana unmanned aircraft heads out on a Southern California wildfires imaging mission. |
| Project Description |
In response to a request from the California Office of Emergency Services and the National Interagency Fire Center, NASA flew an aircraft equipped with sophisticated infrared imaging equipment in October, 2007, to assist firefighters battling several of the Southern California wildfires. The Ikhana unmanned aircraft system, a Predator B modified for civil science and research missions, was launched from its base at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base. It flew over the major blazes burning in the Lake Arrowhead and Running Springs areas and down into San Diego County to image wildfires that raged in that area. The aircraft is controlled remotely by pilots in a ground control station at NASA Dryden. The Ikhana was carrying the Autonomous Modular Scanner, a thermal-infrared imaging system developed at NASA's Ames Research Center in Northern California. The system is capable of peering through heavy smoke and darkness to see hot spots, flames and temperature differences, processing the imagery on-board, and then transmitting that information in near real time so it can aid fire incident commanders in allocating their firefighting resources. The images are transmitted through a communications satellite to NASA Ames where the imagery is placed on an Ames Web site, combined with Google Earth maps, and then transmitted to the interagency fire center in Boise, Idaho, where it is then made available to incident commanders in the field. The system was validated recently during a series of wildfire imaging demonstration missions conducted by NASA and the U.S. Forest Service in August and September. |
| Photo Date |
October 24, 2007 |
|
| Photo Description |
NASA Dryden engineer Kathleen Howell and Ikhana project manager Brent Cobleigh check the flight paths in Ikhana's ground control station before takeoff. |
| Project Description |
In response to a request from the California Office of Emergency Services and the National Interagency Fire Center, NASA flew an aircraft equipped with sophisticated infrared imaging equipment in October, 2007, to assist firefighters battling several of the Southern California wildfires. The Ikhana unmanned aircraft system, a Predator B modified for civil science and research missions, was launched from its base at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base. It flew over the major blazes burning in the Lake Arrowhead and Running Springs areas and down into San Diego County to image wildfires that raged in that area. The aircraft is controlled remotely by pilots in a ground control station at NASA Dryden. The Ikhana was carrying the Autonomous Modular Scanner, a thermal-infrared imaging system developed at NASA's Ames Research Center in Northern California. The system is capable of peering through heavy smoke and darkness to see hot spots, flames and temperature differences, processing the imagery on-board, and then transmitting that information in near real time so it can aid fire incident commanders in allocating their firefighting resources. The images are transmitted through a communications satellite to NASA Ames where the imagery is placed on an Ames Web site, combined with Google Earth maps, and then transmitted to the interagency fire center in Boise, Idaho, where it is then made available to incident commanders in the field. The system was validated recently during a series of wildfire imaging demonstration missions conducted by NASA and the U.S. Forest Service in August and September. |
| Photo Date |
October 24, 2007 |
|
Black Pine 2 Fire, Idaho
| Title |
Black Pine 2 Fire, Idaho |
| Description |
East of the Raft River in southern Idaho, the Black Pine 2 Fire had scorched more than 50,000 acres of grassland, brush, and juniper as of July 11, 2007, according to the morning report from the National Interagency Fire Center. This image of the fire was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite on July 10. The area in which MODIS detected actively burning fire is outlined in red. Smoke spreads east and mingles with clouds. The burned area appears a deep brown against the tan color of the grasslands and the dull green of forests on mountain slopes. Green circles that line the Raft River and tributaries are fields watered with a center-pivot irrigation system. At the top of the image is Lake Walcott, which is on the Snake River. 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/?USA1 ] images of the western United States in additional resolutions and formats, including an infrared-enhanced version that makes burned areas appear brick red. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
|
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. |
|
Haze over Utah
| Title |
Haze over Utah |
| Description |
Haze clouded the skies over the southwestern United States, especially Utah, on September 8, 2007. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite took this picture the same day. In this image, the pale colors dominating western Utah result partly from the light hues of the underlying ground surface, but a substantial gray-beige mass hangs in the atmosphere. The haze is thick enough to almost completely obscure the view of the Great Salt Lake. Although the exact origin of Utah's early September haze was not clear, it probably resulted from smoke released by fires to the north and west in Idaho and California. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
|
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 Pacific North
…
| Title |
Drought in the Pacific Northwest |
| Description |
As summer headed toward fall in 2007, much of the United States was experiencing drought. [ http://drought.unl.edu/dm/monitor.html ] This image shows relative vegetation greenness from August 13-28, 2007, compared to the average greenness for 2000–2006. Greenness is a general indicator of the area covered by vegetation, as well as its density and health. The image was made with observations collected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite. In many parts of the Northwest, vegetation conditions were near average (yellow areas) compared to conditions for the previous 6 years. But aside from areas that were near average, this vegetation anomaly image reveals more brown (below-average conditions) than green (above-average conditions). The most dramatic brown spots, such as those concentrated in central Idaho, mark areas recently scorched by fires. [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14515 ] Only in a few locations in the Northwest does a tinge of green emerge from the landscape, irrigated croplands (green specks) along the Snake and Columbia Rivers mix with what are probably fallow fields (brown specks). NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of Inbal Reshef, Global Agriculture Monitoring Project [ http://www.pecad.fas.usda.gov/glam.cfm ] |
|
Murphy Complex Fire
| Title |
Murphy Complex Fire |
| Description |
When two large, previously separate wildfires (Rowland and Elk Mountain) near the Idaho-Nevada state line merged over the July 21 weekend, fire management officials renamed the incident as the Murphy Complex Fire. According to the morning report from the National Interagency Fire Center on July 23, 2007, the blaze had consumed more than 560,000 acres and was 15 percent contained. This image of the Murphy Complex Fire 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 22. Places where the sensor detected actively burning fire are outlined in red. The dry grassland and sagebrush terrain appears olive-tan, while the sprawling burned area appears deep brown. 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/?USA1 ] images of the western United States in additional resolutions. Images of the separate fires were previously published in the Fires in Idaho and Eastern Oregon [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14398 ] event. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
|
Fires in Idaho and Eastern O
…
| Title |
Fires in Idaho and Eastern Oregon |
| Description |
Fire activity ramped up across the U.S. West near the end of the third week of July 2007. Dry thunderstorms (lightning and winds, but no rain) ignited hundreds of fires in a matter of days, and many of these became large blazes that raced through dry grass, sagebrush, and forests. This image of southern Idaho and eastern Oregon shows several large fires (outlined in red) billowing out thick clouds of smoke on July 18, 2007. The image and fire detections were captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite. 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/fas/?USA1 ] images of the region in additional resolutions and formats, including an infrared-enhanced version that makes burned landscapes stand out in brick red. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
|
Fires in Idaho and Eastern O
…
| Title |
Fires in Idaho and Eastern Oregon |
| Description |
MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC, Strong winds fanned wildfires across the western United States on July 19, 2007. The hot, dry, windy conditions led the National Interagency Fire Center to move to a National Preparedness Level [ http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/pl_desc.html ] of 5 on a five-point scale, indicating that the fires were numerous, large, and widespread enough to potentially exhaust fire-fighting resources. More than a million acres were burning across the United States in 72 large wildfires on July 19, 2007, said the National Interagency Fire Center. [ http://www.nifc.gov/fire_info/nfn.htm ] Among the largest fires were the Rowland and Elk Mountain fires burning in southwestern Idaho. The active fronts of these fires are outlined in red in this pair of photo-like images acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on July 19, 2007. The top image was taken at 12:25 p.m., Mountain Daylight Time, when the MODIS on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite passed over head. The active parts of the Elk Mountain fire surround a dark brown oval of charred land. The fast-moving flames had consumed much of this area in the previous 24 hours. A MODIS image taken on the afternoon of July 18, [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14396 ] reveals that the fire had been relatively small the previous day, and little land around the fire was charred. The Rowland fire, by contrast, was smaller on July 19 than it had been on July 18. At 2:05 p.m. on July 19, less than two hours after the top image was taken, the MODIS sensor aboard NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the lower image. In the two-hour period between images, winds and fire activity picked up substantially. By the time of the second image, the fires were racing through grass and sagebrush and pumping out dense plumes of smoke. The smoke obscures the burned land and the surrounding desert landscape. Strong winds were pulling the smoke north in long plumes that stretch over the green and gold Snake River Plain. The National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) reported that both the Rowland and Elk Mountain fires exhibited extreme fire behavior, [ http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/glossary.html#E ] with fast-moving or unpredictable flames, and that it threatened structures and power lines. On July 20, the Rowland fire had burned 95,000 acres and was 15 percent contained, while the Elk Mountain fire had burned 160,000 acres (up from 25,000 acres the day before) and was 10 percent contained, said NIFC. The large images provided above are at MODIS' maximum resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. They stretch south to include much of Nevada and Utah. Both the 12:25 and 2:05 images are available in a variety of resolutions from the MODIS Rapid Response System. Images courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, |
|
Fires in Idaho and Eastern O
…
| Title |
Fires in Idaho and Eastern Oregon |
| Description |
MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC, Strong winds fanned wildfires across the western United States on July 19, 2007. The hot, dry, windy conditions led the National Interagency Fire Center to move to a National Preparedness Level [ http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/pl_desc.html ] of 5 on a five-point scale, indicating that the fires were numerous, large, and widespread enough to potentially exhaust fire-fighting resources. More than a million acres were burning across the United States in 72 large wildfires on July 19, 2007, said the National Interagency Fire Center. [ http://www.nifc.gov/fire_info/nfn.htm ] Among the largest fires were the Rowland and Elk Mountain fires burning in southwestern Idaho. The active fronts of these fires are outlined in red in this pair of photo-like images acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on July 19, 2007. The top image was taken at 12:25 p.m., Mountain Daylight Time, when the MODIS on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite passed over head. The active parts of the Elk Mountain fire surround a dark brown oval of charred land. The fast-moving flames had consumed much of this area in the previous 24 hours. A MODIS image taken on the afternoon of July 18, [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14396 ] reveals that the fire had been relatively small the previous day, and little land around the fire was charred. The Rowland fire, by contrast, was smaller on July 19 than it had been on July 18. At 2:05 p.m. on July 19, less than two hours after the top image was taken, the MODIS sensor aboard NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the lower image. In the two-hour period between images, winds and fire activity picked up substantially. By the time of the second image, the fires were racing through grass and sagebrush and pumping out dense plumes of smoke. The smoke obscures the burned land and the surrounding desert landscape. Strong winds were pulling the smoke north in long plumes that stretch over the green and gold Snake River Plain. The National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) reported that both the Rowland and Elk Mountain fires exhibited extreme fire behavior, [ http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/glossary.html#E ] with fast-moving or unpredictable flames, and that it threatened structures and power lines. On July 20, the Rowland fire had burned 95,000 acres and was 15 percent contained, while the Elk Mountain fire had burned 160,000 acres (up from 25,000 acres the day before) and was 10 percent contained, said NIFC. The large images provided above are at MODIS' maximum resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. They stretch south to include much of Nevada and Utah. Both the 12:25 and 2:05 images are available in a variety of resolutions from the MODIS Rapid Response System. Images courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, |
|
Fires in Idaho and Eastern O
…
| Title |
Fires in Idaho and Eastern Oregon |
| Description |
MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC, Strong winds fanned wildfires across the western United States on July 19, 2007. The hot, dry, windy conditions led the National Interagency Fire Center to move to a National Preparedness Level [ http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/pl_desc.html ] of 5 on a five-point scale, indicating that the fires were numerous, large, and widespread enough to potentially exhaust fire-fighting resources. More than a million acres were burning across the United States in 72 large wildfires on July 19, 2007, said the National Interagency Fire Center. [ http://www.nifc.gov/fire_info/nfn.htm ] Among the largest fires were the Rowland and Elk Mountain fires burning in southwestern Idaho. The active fronts of these fires are outlined in red in this pair of photo-like images acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on July 19, 2007. The top image was taken at 12:25 p.m., Mountain Daylight Time, when the MODIS on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite passed over head. The active parts of the Elk Mountain fire surround a dark brown oval of charred land. The fast-moving flames had consumed much of this area in the previous 24 hours. A MODIS image taken on the afternoon of July 18, [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14396 ] reveals that the fire had been relatively small the previous day, and little land around the fire was charred. The Rowland fire, by contrast, was smaller on July 19 than it had been on July 18. At 2:05 p.m. on July 19, less than two hours after the top image was taken, the MODIS sensor aboard NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the lower image. In the two-hour period between images, winds and fire activity picked up substantially. By the time of the second image, the fires were racing through grass and sagebrush and pumping out dense plumes of smoke. The smoke obscures the burned land and the surrounding desert landscape. Strong winds were pulling the smoke north in long plumes that stretch over the green and gold Snake River Plain. The National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) reported that both the Rowland and Elk Mountain fires exhibited extreme fire behavior, [ http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/glossary.html#E ] with fast-moving or unpredictable flames, and that it threatened structures and power lines. On July 20, the Rowland fire had burned 95,000 acres and was 15 percent contained, while the Elk Mountain fire had burned 160,000 acres (up from 25,000 acres the day before) and was 10 percent contained, said NIFC. The large images provided above are at MODIS' maximum resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. They stretch south to include much of Nevada and Utah. Both the 12:25 and 2:05 images are available in a variety of resolutions from the MODIS Rapid Response System. Images courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, |
|
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 |
|
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. |
|
Smoke from fires in Idaho an
…
| 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/ ] |
|
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. |
|
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/ ] |
|
Murphy Complex Fire: Natural
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
When two large, previously s
…
murphy_AMO_2007203
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-07-22 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
murphy_AMO_2007203 |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho:
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
In the Northern Rockies of I
…
idaho_AMO_2007213
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-01 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
idaho_AMO_2007213 |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho:
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
In the northern Rocky Mounta
…
Montana_AMO_2007212
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-07-31 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
Montana_AMO_2007212 |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho:
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
According to the September 4
…
Missoula_AMO_2007246
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-03 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
Missoula_AMO_2007246 |
|
Black Pine 2 Fire, Idaho: Na
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
East of the Raft River in so
…
idaho_TMO_2007191
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-07-11 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
idaho_TMO_2007191 |
|
Drought in the Pacific North
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
As summer headed toward fall
…
uspnwndvia_tmo_2007225
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-28 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
uspnwndvia_tmo_2007225 |
|
Haze over the Great Lakes: N
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Haze collected over the Grea
…
grlakes_tmo_2007212
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-07-31 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
grlakes_tmo_2007212 |
|
Haze over Utah: Natural Haza
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Haze clouded the skies over
…
ge_19025
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-08 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ge_19025 |
|
Haze over Utah: Natural Haza
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Haze clouded the skies over
…
ge_19025
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-08 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ge_19025 |
|
Fires in Idaho and Eastern O
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
* eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/ima
…
Idaho_amo_tmo_2007200
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-07-19 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
Idaho_amo_tmo_2007200 |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho:
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
More than a dozen large fire
…
ge_18834
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-12 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ge_18834 |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho:
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
More than a dozen large fire
…
ge_18834
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-12 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ge_18834 |
|
Smoke from fires in Idaho an
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
* eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/ima
…
USA_AMO_2007216
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-04 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
USA_AMO_2007216 |
|
Smoke over Montana: Natural
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Smoke sprawled over much of
…
montana_amo_2007210
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-07-29 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
montana_amo_2007210 |
|
Fires in Montana and Idaho:
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Intense wildfires (location
…
montana_amo_2007216
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-04 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
montana_amo_2007216 |
|
Raging Fires in Idaho and Mo
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
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Dozens of large fires were r
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Missoula_AMO_2007224
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-12 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image courtesy the rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov MODIS Rapid Response Team, Goddard Space Flight Center |
| identifier |
Missoula_AMO_2007224 |
|
|
