Fires in Oklahoma

Warm, windy weather fueled fires across the Southern Plains on January 29, 2011. This image, taken by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite at 1:00 p.m. Central Standard Time on January 29, shows a cluster of fires in eastern Oklahoma. The fires are burning in the Ouachita Mountains.

According to local news, 25 grass fires burned in Oklahoma by 3:30, forcing two highways to close. Much of Oklahoma and Arkansas is in drought. Dry conditions combined with warm weather and winds generated extremely dangerous fire conditions.

1. References

2. 4029 TV. (2011, January 29). Authorities: Fire danger extremely high. Accessed January 31, 2011.
3. Heim, R. National drought summary – January 25, 2011. National Drought Monitor. Accessed January 31, 2011.
4. National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center. Fire weather outlook, January 29, 2011. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Accessed January 31, 2011.
5. NewsOK. (2011, January 20). Grass fire burns east of Guthrie. Accessed January 31, 2011.

NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC. Caption by Holli Riebeek.

Published January 31, 2011
Data acquired January 29, 2011

Source:

Aqua > MODIS