Images
August 30, 2018 - Burn Scar north of Etosha Pan
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Aside from the Sahara Desert, Namibia is one of the driest regions in Africa. Although precipitation varies across the country, the average annual rainfall reaches only 10 inches (258 mm). Once upon a time – somewhere between 2 and 10 million years ago – the climate was very different. At that time the Kunene (Cunene) River flowed into a large lake in northern Namibia. Changes in land surface features re-routed the river, causing it to flow into the Atlantic Ocean. And the waters of the lake slowly evaporated, leaving behind a large salt lake – the Etosha Pan.
The Etosha Pan is the largest salt pan in Africa, measuring about 81 mi (130 km) long and 31 mi (50 km) wide and covering about 4,800 sq. km (1,853 sq. mi). It sits in an open tree and shrub savanna ecosystem that supports large game and wildlife species, including many which are rare or endangered. The rainy season runs from October to April, with enough rain falling in most years to encourage grassland growth. The dry season slowly desiccates the vegetation and by August the region is primed to burn.
Fire is a natural and regular occurrence in savanna ecosystems, playing a strong role in the health of vegetation, wildlife, and even in the way humans use the land. Wildfire can also be extremely destructive, destroying vast acreage, killing wildlife, and destroying structures. Almost all wildfires in Etosha National Park – a protected area which includes the Etosha Pan – occurs in the late dry season (August – November) and are started by visitors, neighboring property owners, prescribed burns designed to manage the land, and lightning.
On August 24, 2018, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired a false-color image of a large burn scar north of Etosha Pan.
False-color images use a combination of infrared and visible light to highlight various features. In this image, land appears tan while vegetation – even sparse vegetation – appears bright green. The salt pan appears white or very light pink and burn scars appear burnt orange. While it is not possible to know what caused this fire, given the time of year and the fact that most fire-management (i.e. deliberately set) fires cover multiple small areas rather than one large one, this most likely was created by a wildfire of significant size.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Aqua
Date Acquired: 8/24/2018
Resolutions:
1km (115.4 KB), 500m (291.9 KB), 250m (192.6 KB)
Bands Used: 7,2,1
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
Aside from the Sahara Desert, Namibia is one of the driest regions in Africa. Although precipitation varies across the country, the average annual rainfall reaches only 10 inches (258 mm). Once upon a time – somewhere between 2 and 10 million years ago – the climate was very different. At that time the Kunene (Cunene) River flowed into a large lake in northern Namibia. Changes in land surface features re-routed the river, causing it to flow into the Atlantic Ocean. And the waters of the lake slowly evaporated, leaving behind a large salt lake – the Etosha Pan.
The Etosha Pan is the largest salt pan in Africa, measuring about 81 mi (130 km) long and 31 mi (50 km) wide and covering about 4,800 sq. km (1,853 sq. mi). It sits in an open tree and shrub savanna ecosystem that supports large game and wildlife species, including many which are rare or endangered. The rainy season runs from October to April, with enough rain falling in most years to encourage grassland growth. The dry season slowly desiccates the vegetation and by August the region is primed to burn.
Fire is a natural and regular occurrence in savanna ecosystems, playing a strong role in the health of vegetation, wildlife, and even in the way humans use the land. Wildfire can also be extremely destructive, destroying vast acreage, killing wildlife, and destroying structures. Almost all wildfires in Etosha National Park – a protected area which includes the Etosha Pan – occurs in the late dry season (August – November) and are started by visitors, neighboring property owners, prescribed burns designed to manage the land, and lightning.
On August 24, 2018, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired a false-color image of a large burn scar north of Etosha Pan.
False-color images use a combination of infrared and visible light to highlight various features. In this image, land appears tan while vegetation – even sparse vegetation – appears bright green. The salt pan appears white or very light pink and burn scars appear burnt orange. While it is not possible to know what caused this fire, given the time of year and the fact that most fire-management (i.e. deliberately set) fires cover multiple small areas rather than one large one, this most likely was created by a wildfire of significant size.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Aqua
Date Acquired: 8/24/2018
Resolutions:
1km (115.4 KB), 500m (291.9 KB), 250m (192.6 KB)
Bands Used: 7,2,1
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
