December 30, 2009 - Fires in Central Africa

Fires in Central Africa

Hundreds, if not thousands of fires were burning in central Africa on December 23, 2009. The MODIS on the Aqua satellite captured this image on the same day. The fires, which have been marked with red dots, cover Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, and the Central African Republic (from left to right).

Fire is a common land management tool, and the widespread nature of these fires suggests that these were probably deliberately set to clear land. The rainforests of the Congo region are dark green along the bottom of the image. The grasslands of the Sahel are a lighter green and tan in the top half of the image.

Image Facts
Satellite: Aqua
Date Acquired: 12/23/2009
Resolutions: 1km ( B), 500m ( B), 250m ( B)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC