Darvaza Gas Crater seen by VIIRS Nightfire

By Chris Elvidge

The Darvaza Gas Crater in Turkmenistan, also known as the “Gates of Hell,” is seen by VIIRS Nightfire. The nightly temporal profile shows a gradual decline in the activity levels and an indication of annual cycling. The temperature has been steady near 1224 K. That is about 400 K cooler than the typical gas flare, perhaps an indication of inefficient combustion.

Cuban Fuel Depot Fire Causes Energy Crisis

By Elijah Mt. Castle

A fuel storage depot in Matanzas, Cuba burned for 5 days. The fire destroyed 4 crude oil tankers in the port which made up 40% of the country’s reserves. The oil in Matanzas is mainly used for generating electricity. The country has already been experiencing blackouts in the last months and shortages on gasoline and other items. The fire was started by a lightning strike igniting one of the tanks and quickly spread to the others. Mexican and Venezuelan fire teams have assisted the Cuban government in combating the fire. Large oil fires like this one can cause many health issues. Citizens as far as Havana, ~100 km(62mi) away, have been advised to wear face masks. The massive smoke cloud, observable in the map, can also cause acid rain which can cause and irritate respiratory problems. Pictured are the VNF detections for August 6th-8th 2022. Pictured with the map is the Planck curve for the August 6th detection. The detection had a temperature of 1171 K (1648 F).

Sources: https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/cuba-still-struggling-with-oil-depot-fire-worst-islands-history-2022-08-09/   

August 11, 2022

Silo Fire at Site of Former Explosion In Beirut

By Elijah Mt. Castle

There is a grain silo fire burning in the capital of Lebanon, Beirut. The age of the grain has caused it to begin fermenting, adding alcohol to the fire. The blaze started in early July and has been continuously burning. The fire is currently being allowed to smolder for fear that any fire suppression efforts would cause the silos to collapse from their previous damage. The port city of Beirut was rocked by a deadly explosion on August 4th, 2020.  It was heard in the neighboring country of Cyprus 240km (150 mi) away. The explosion was caused by the unsafe storage of ammonium nitrate. The resulting blast had a force equivalent to 1 kilotons of TNT, the same force as the first nuclear bombs. The explosion took place on the docks next to the now burning silos creating a crater that was quickly filled by the sea. 218 deaths were reported and over 7000 injuries were logged. The 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate were seized from an abandoned Moldovan cargo ship 6 years prior. There were allegations of fireworks and other explosive materials also being stored improperly at the site. The current fire does not pose any threat to any structure outside of the damaged silos themselves. Pictured are the VNF detections for July 12th and 13th 2022. The fire is burning on the inside of the concrete silos, so only a few detections were noticed during the fire. Pictured with the map is the Planck curve and auxiliary data for the July 13th detection, which had a recorded temperature of 1395K (2050 F). Due to the satellite pixel size, the detections aren’t located directly at the silo location.

Wildfire in Yosemite National Park

Wildfire in Cyprus

By Elijah Mt. Castle

Wildfires in Arizona

Chinese Fishing Fleet Returns Yearly to Argentina

Largest Wildfires in New Mexico’s History

• The Cooks Peak Fire started on May 13th. It is now 100% contained but is still actively burning. It has burned 59,000 acres and its cause is unknown at this time.
• The largest wildfire, Hermits Peak, started as two separate fires: a prescribed burn that became uncontrolled on April 6th; and a holdover fire from January that reemerged around the same time. Hermits Peak is the largest fire in New Mexico’s history with a total area burned at 315,000 acres.
• Cerro Pelado began on April 22nd and its cause is still unknown. It has burned 45,000 acres.
• Bear Trap began on May 1st and has burned 38,000 acres. Fire teams are suppressing damage to natural resources in the surrounding forest/grasslands.
• The Black Fire started on May 14th in the Gila wilderness. It has grown to 249,000 acres and fire crews are attempting to prevent it from crossing into Gila National Forest.