Images
January 22, 2026 - Prescribed Fires in the Southeastern United States
Tweet
Streaks of smoke rose from multiple fires in the Southeastern United States in mid-January 2026. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired this true-color image of fires in Alabama (west) and Georgia (east) on January 20.
While it’s not possible to know the cause of a fire simply by looking at a satellite image, several clues may be evident. In this case, the time of year, number of fires, and location all strongly suggest that the majority of these fires are prescribed fires. Such fires are deliberately set for a definite purpose, usually to manage either agricultural acreage or wildland.
According to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) website, prescribed fire in the state’s forests and wildlands involves trained agency professionals, contractors, and private landowners that only burn an area if specific fuel and weather conditions exist. These specific conditions are called a “prescription”, which is the basis for the term “prescribed fire”. Most prescribed fires occur in winter and spring, when conditions are most favorable.
Many habitats and the plants and animals that depend on them require regular fires to stay healthy. In Georgia and Alabama, these habitats includes longleaf pine savannas, herbaceous bogs, oak-hickory forests, as well as high-elevations balds in the mountains. The Georgia DNR also shares that rare wildlife in the state, including pitcher plants, gopher tortoises, and red-cockaded woodpeckers, live in fire-adapted habitats. Prescribed fires also reduce fuel load, such as downed limbs, dead trees, and dry underbrush and thus helps reduce the severity of any wildfires that spark in more dangerous conditions.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Aqua
Date Acquired: 1/20/2026
Resolutions:
1km (56.8 KB), 500m (198.2 KB), 250m (595.3 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
Streaks of smoke rose from multiple fires in the Southeastern United States in mid-January 2026. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired this true-color image of fires in Alabama (west) and Georgia (east) on January 20. While it’s not possible to know the cause of a fire simply by looking at a satellite image, several clues may be evident. In this case, the time of year, number of fires, and location all strongly suggest that the majority of these fires are prescribed fires. Such fires are deliberately set for a definite purpose, usually to manage either agricultural acreage or wildland.
According to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) website, prescribed fire in the state’s forests and wildlands involves trained agency professionals, contractors, and private landowners that only burn an area if specific fuel and weather conditions exist. These specific conditions are called a “prescription”, which is the basis for the term “prescribed fire”. Most prescribed fires occur in winter and spring, when conditions are most favorable.
Many habitats and the plants and animals that depend on them require regular fires to stay healthy. In Georgia and Alabama, these habitats includes longleaf pine savannas, herbaceous bogs, oak-hickory forests, as well as high-elevations balds in the mountains. The Georgia DNR also shares that rare wildlife in the state, including pitcher plants, gopher tortoises, and red-cockaded woodpeckers, live in fire-adapted habitats. Prescribed fires also reduce fuel load, such as downed limbs, dead trees, and dry underbrush and thus helps reduce the severity of any wildfires that spark in more dangerous conditions.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Aqua
Date Acquired: 1/20/2026
Resolutions:
1km (56.8 KB), 500m (198.2 KB), 250m (595.3 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
