Images captured from high above the fray may be less evocative of some big-budget disaster film, but they put the wildfires into terrifying perspective. NASA’s Terra satellite captured the image above on Friday morning, showing the massive spread of smoke from all three blazes out into the ocean. On Thursday morning NASA’s Landsat 8 acquired a closer view of the Camp Fire, which had started just around four hours earlier. Areas of active fire are highlighted with short-wave infrared light. By 8:00 p.m. local time, the Camp Fire had consumed some 20,000 acres of land; the latest reports say 70,000 acres have burned, and the fire is five percent contained. The last five years have been packed with superlative wildfires in the region, but experts say that infernos of this magnitude are likely the new norm. Climate change is creating gradually warmer and drier conditions across much of the Southwest. If you’re in the area, please brush up on wildfire safety tips and pay attention to evacuation advisories—and please stay safe.
