A tremendous wildfire is burning in California now, on the edge of Yosemite National Park. It is hauntingly reminiscent of the Yellowstone fire in the late ’80s, although so far Yosemite itself is still mostly clear of fire, but this time we have far more eyes in the sky to look down on it.
The Aqua spacecraft’s MODIS instrument captured this visible-light image of the Rim Fire on August 26, 2013.
The Terra spacecraft’s ASTER sensor captured this infrared image on August 30, 2013. Green, unburned vegetation is highly reflective in infrared, so appears bright red in the picture.
Suomi NPP captured this image with its VIIRS infrared instrument, tracking the movement of the fire at night.
The Aqua spacecraft’s AIRS instrument collects data on aerosols; this globe is computed from a three-day average. The Rim Fire’s plum is very visible.
And Karen Nygren, aboard the ISS, took this picture out the Cupola windows on August 24.
Calli Arcale's Fractal Wonder 