Fires in Oregon and California

In southwest Oregon, the Biscuit Fire (red dots near the coast) and the Tiller Complex Fire (to the northeast) continue to grow. This Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) image from August 14, 2002, shows the pillars of smoke arising from the fires. More than 6,000 fire personnel are assigned to Biscuit Fire alone, which was 390,276 acres as of Friday morning, August 15, and only 26 percent contained. Among the resources threatened are thousands of homes, three nationally designated wild and scenic rivers, and habitat for several categories of plants and animals at risk of extinction. Firefighters currently have no estimate on when the fire might be contained.

In California, the San Joaquin Valley stands out in green against the darker green, forested slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, where the McNalley Fire is burning. The fire was 133,000 acres as of August 14, and about 75 percent contained. At bottom right, cement-colored pixels mark the location of the Los Angeles metropolitan area.

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Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC

Published August 15, 2002
Data acquired August 14 - 14, 2002

Source:

Terra > MODIS

Topic:

Human Dimensions > Natural Hazards > Fires

Collections:

MODIS Rapid Response

Visible Earth