At the end of the summer wildfire season for Italy a large fire in the Tuscany region (Pisa Province) broke out on September 24, 2018. Weather conditions, often a catalyst for fire events, were favorable to this wildfire’s ignition. Strong winds were recorded for days driving the fire onward and making fighting the flames difficult. This fire has affected a large area and has migrated out of the forest where it began to towns and villages. More than 700 people were evacuated due to the fire and its smoke.
NASA’s Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS) Worldview application provides the capability to interactively browse over 700 global, full-resolution satellite imagery layers and then download the underlying data. Many of the available imagery layers are updated within three hours of observation, essentially showing the entire Earth as it looks “right now.” This satellite image was collected on September 26, 2018. Actively burning fires, detected by thermal bands, are shown as red points. Image Courtesy: NASA Worldview, Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS). Caption: Lynn Jenner with information from the Copernicus Emergency Management Service.