Soberanes Fire VIIRS high res data — 2100 8/1

We finally got high resolution VIIRS data tonight:

Let’s take a closer look at the Cachagua area:

The orange lines are the dozer fire breaks that were in as of 7/30. The pink lines are the ones that were planned as of that date. The hotspots near the dozer breaks are back burns. Some of the fire to the west of there may be as well, but it’s hard to tell from these satellite images.

How to read the MODIS/VIIRS heat indications: The size of the square represents the nominal margin of error. The fire could be anywhere in the square, not just at the center. Dark red squares were detected less than six hours before the data set was created. Light red squares were detected less than twelve hours before the data set was created. Orange squares were detected less than 24 hours before the data set was created. Yellow squares were detected less than six days before the data set was created. When the squares overlay other objects, the color of the square changes somewhat, but the color of the dot in the middle does not. So look at the dot if you’re uncertain what color the square should be. Since the fire is now over six days old, some of the early detections have dropped off the map. MODIS makes mistakes, sometimes missing outbreaks, and sometime misplacing them outside the nominal margin of error. It is also a snapshot of the activity at the time the satellite is overhead, and will definitely miss flare ups between passes. MODIS can’t tell the difference between wildfires and intentional back burns.