Pic of the Week: Fire in the Canary Islands

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): July 15, 2023 fire in the Canary Islands. (NASA Earth Observatory images by Wanmei Liang, using MODIS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE and GIBS/Worldview)

This week’s image is from NASA’s Earth Observatory showing the recent fires in the Canary Islands. The image below provides great detail regarding what you are seeing.

Here is the story from NASA:

In the early hours of July 15, 2023, a wildfire broke out on La Palma, the most northwesterly of the Canary Islands….The bright areas near islands south of La Palma resemble smoke, but they are actually the result of an optical phenomenon caused by sunglint.

The fire burned through pine forests west of a large caldera on the northern part of the island. At least 20 buildings were destroyed and 4,000 people evacuated their homes, according to Reuters. On July 16, authorities reported that the fire had charred at least 4,650 hectares (18 square miles)…

Fires on La Palma are common in summer due to the island’s dry climate. One analysis of tree rings suggests that intense fires burn the island’s forests roughly every 7 years on average, with less intense fires burning every 2-4 years.

Image (Credit): Greater details showing the July 15, 2023 fire in the Canary Islands. (NASA Earth Observatory images by Wanmei Liang, using MODIS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE and GIBS/Worldview)