Geysers Fire in California

Twelve thousand acres have burned so far in the Geyser Fire, shown here in this true-color Aqua MODIS image acquired on September 4, 2004. The fire’s cause is still under investigation, but the fire itself is 85 percent contained. However, the fire (marked with red pixels due south of Clear Lake) remains fast-moving, and is threatening high-pressure steam generation facilities, major power lines, and numerous vineyards and wineries. The fire is located in northern California, near Geysers, the world’s largest geothermal power plant. In this image, smoke from the fire snakes in a thick coil to the southwest out over the Pacific Ocean.

South of the fire, the San Francisco Bay is a body of milky green water surrounded by densely-packed cities, which appear grey. The small fire to the southeast of Geyser is an unnamed fire near Vacaville, California. For more information about fires in the United States, please visit the National Interagency Fire Center.

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Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC

Published September 6, 2004
Data acquired September 4, 2004

Source:

Aqua > MODIS

Collection:

Visible Earth