Category: EOG

VIIRS Day/Night Band Power Outage Analysis for the February 6, 2023 Earthquake in Turkey and Syria

VIIRS Day/Night Band Power Outage Analysis for the February 6, 2023 Earthquake in Turkey and Syria

urkey_Syria_earthquake_power_outage

by Tilottama Ghosh, Christopher Elvidge, Mikhail Zhizhin

On February 6, 2023, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck at a depth of 20 km, and at a distance of 30 km WNW of Gaziantep province in Turkey (https://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=1218444). At least 120 aftershocks have been felt around the region, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). At least 41,000 people have lost their lives till date (February 15*, 2023) and the number continues to rise. The natural disaster has aggravated the preexisting humanitarian need in the region as many Syrian refugees are concentrated in the 10 affected provinces of southern Turkey, and Syria, and have been already suffering from over a decade of civil war.
The earthquake was caused by the Arabian plate moving northwards and grinding against the Anatolian plate (https://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/271/M7-8-CENTRAL-TURKEY-on-February-6th-2023-at-01-17-UTC). The movement of these two plates along the transform fault boundary caused the severe earthquake in Turkey and Syria.
In the attached images the fault lines are shown in cyan, and the earthquake epicenter is shown as a point in light green.
The images are red, green blue color composites:
Red = JPSS NPP VIIRS DNB January 2022, monthly cloud-free composite
Green = JPSS NPP VIIRS DNB visible band
Blue = JPSS NPP VIIRS M15 thermal band – inverted so cold clouds and cold terrain are bright blue.
The first image shows a typical day prior to the earthquake, with lit areas shown in yellow. The pages to follow show results from individual nights following the earthquake with power outage in red, normal power supply in yellow, and the clouds and high elevation (cold) terrain are shown in blue. Lights obscured by clouds are magenta. It is interesting to note that the areas of power outage follow the fault line. The progression of images show that in some areas power supplies are returning.

Pakistan’s power outage on January 23, 2023

Pakistan’s power outage on January 23, 2023

Pakistan_outage_20230123

by Tilottama Ghosh, Christopher Elvidge

The image is a red, green blue color composite with:
Red = JPSS NPP VIIRS DNB January 2022 monthly cloud-free composite
Green = JPSS NPP VIIRS DNB visible band
Blue = JPSS NPP VIIRS M15 thermal band – inverted so cold clouds and terrain are bright blue

The areas of power outage are shown in red, normal power supply in yellow, and the clouds and high elevation (cold) terrain are shown in blue. Light obscured by clouds are magenta.

Millions of people in Pakistan were reported to be without electric power on during the day on Monday, January 23, 2023 when electricity was turned off Sunday night to conserve energy. The next morning, technicians were unable to restart the system in the dawn hours and the power remained off during much of the day on January 23 (https://apnews.com/article/disaster-planning-and-response-karachi-pakistan-islamabad-business-2dc7d442d662f462de146111d02c49e2?utm_source=homepage&utm_medium=TopNews&utm_campaign=position_05). Many major cities, including the capital of Islamabad, and many of the small villages and towns across Pakistan were reported to be without electricity for more than twelve hours. Officials announced that power was restored in many cities after a blackout of about 15 hours. Due to the lack of proper maintenance and failure of the government to invest in new infrastructure, Pakistan’s power distribution infrastructure is in poor shape and has become susceptible to frequent blackouts (https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/23/world/asia/pakistan-power-outage-blackouts.html)

Despite the reporting of power outages, the satellite analysis indicates that most areas of lighting remained lit, perhaps due to the use of local backup generators. The VIIRS data were collected after midnight on January 23, 2023.  Several patches of lighting outage were detected based on a red color in the color composite.  Some of the outage areas are indicated with lines on the color composite image.

Grass Fire in South Australia

Grass Fire in South Australia

S.AUS Grass Fire

By: Elijah Mt. Castle

There was a wildfire in the Northeast edge of Southern Australia that grew to over 65,000 hectares (161,000 acres). The wildfire started on the 19th of September and burned for 10 days. Due to its location in remote APY land (An indigenous protected zone) fire suppression efforts was hampered. Fortunately, the communities of Kalka and Pipalyatjara were not threatened by the fire. Firebreaks were created to protect the endangered species of warru that live in the area. No damage was reported from the fire. Pictured is a rough extent of the fire with an estimated area of 51,000 hectares (126,000 acres). This was estimated by placing a 2km buffer around valid VNF detection points. The official measured area of the fire was 65,000 hectares, so the method of using a 2km buffer range around VNF detections was a decent approximation of the extent of the fire with an error of 21.5%. Due to the nature of VNF, flaming activity is only detected at night. The discrepancy in burn area may be due to missing data from the fire expanding during the day. The VNF data used was from September 19th – 29th, 2022.

October 28, 2022

Power Outage in Florida caused by Hurricane Ian

Power Outage in Florida caused by Hurricane Ian

Florida Power Outage

Florida Power Outage

by Tilottama Ghosh

Red Band: JPSS NPP VIIRS DNB February 2022 monthly cloud free composite

Green Band: JPSS NPP VIIRS DNB visible band

Blue Band: JPSS NPP VIIRS DNB inverted M15 thermal band

The areas of power outage are shown in red, normal power supply in yellow, and the clouds and terrain are shown in blue.

Hurricane Ian made landfall in Florida on the southwest coast in the island of Cayo Costa near Fort Myers and Cape Coral on September 28th at about 3:15 pm local time as a Category 4 Hurricane. It caused immense damage to life and property. On September 30th, 1.8 million people were still without power (https://www.axios.com/2022/09/28/hurricane-ian-florida-power-outage). The RGB (Red-Green-Blue) image on the right shows the power outage in red as of September 30th. The path of Hurricane Ian has been retraced from the ‘Zoom Earth’ Image of NOAA/NESDIS/STAR (https://zoom.earth/storms/ian-2022/). The RGB image of on the right is of August 18th and shows the power supply during normal times.

October 5, 2022

Power Outage in Puerto Rico caused by Hurricane Fiona

Power Outage in Puerto Rico caused by Hurricane Fiona

 

Puerto Rico power outage

Puerto Rico power outage

 

by Tilottama Ghosh

Red Band: JPSS NPP VIIRS DNB February 2022 monthly cloud free composite

Green Band: JPSS NPP VIIRS DNB visible band

Blue Band: JPSS NPP VIIRS DNB inverted M15 thermal band

The areas of power outage are shown in red, normal power supply in yellow, and the clouds and terrain are shown in blue.

On September 15th, power supply was ‘normal’ in Puerto Rico. Increasing cloud cover was seen September 16th onwards, till Hurricane Fiona made landfall on September 18th. The cloud cover remained heavy till September 21st making it difficult to get a ‘clear’ view of the power outage. The September 22nd RGB image shows the power outage in red. This is confirmed by the Reuters report that 1.1. million homes are still without power in Puerto Rico (https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/one-million-still-without-power-puerto-rico-after-fiona-2022-09-22/)

September 26, 2022

 

Cuban Fuel Depot Fire Causes Energy Crisis

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

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.

July 21, 2022

Wildfire in Yosemite National Park

Wildfire in Yosemite National Park

By Elijah Mt. Castle
The Washburn Fire burning in the southern tip of Yosemite National Park is threatening the Mariposa Grove of giant sequoia trees. The grove contains 500 giant trees some of which are more than 2,000 years old. As a preventative measure, sprinklers have been installed around the grove. The Grizzly Giant, the largest in the Mariposa grove, received its own set of sprinklers. The iconic tree is the second largest in the park and stands at 209 feet tall. Sequoia trees are the largest living organisms in the world by volume they can live for thousands of years and continue to grow for their entire lifespans. Despite having thick fire resistant bark, they can still be damaged or killed by fire. The National Park Service is working tirelessly to combat the Washburn Fire. Removing brush and other fuels around the grove will hamper the fire spreading. The fire is currently burning in a heavily ticketed and hilly region that is hampering fire suppression efforts. High temperatures and dry conditions have allowed the fire grow to over 2,000 acres as of July 11th. The fire started on July 7th and the cause is currently being investigated. Pictured are the VNF detections for July 7th – 11th, 2022. Also pictured is the VIIRS SNPP average radiances for July 9th, 2022.
July 22, 2022

Wildfire in Cyprus

Wildfire in Cyprus

By Elijah Mt. Castle

There is a large wildfire in northern Cyprus. Started by a vehicle fire it quickly spread to over 10,000 acres. Fire crews have been sent by Israel, Turkey, the UN, the UK, and the Republic of Cyprus to help fight the blaze. Cyprus has a rich history and complicated geo-politics. Cyprus had been settled and controlled by many different empires including the Greeks, Romans, Persians, and the Turks. Northern Cyprus is under the de facto control of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus(TRNC). This state is only recognized by one nation in the UN, Turkey. The TNRC declared independence in 1983 after a coup d’état in 1974 attempting to annex the island to Greece. This sparked the Turkish invasion of the northern island and the eviction of Greek Cypriots from the north. International sanctions on the state force it be economically dependent on Turkey. A United Nations controlled line divides the two areas for the reason of peacekeeping. Two British military bases exist on the southern coast of the island. The Republic of Cyprus in the south has lent firefighting aircraft to help fight the blaze. The Republic’s spokesperson referred to the assistance as “fire diplomacy”. The fire has threatened several villages in the area, but locals were able to carve fire-lines with tractors to prevent damage. Pictured are the VNF detections for June 22nd and 23rd, 2022. Also pictured is the VIIRS SNPP average radiances for June 22nd, 2022. The claimed area of the TRNC is pictured along with the Republic of Cyprus.
June 27, 2022

Wildfires in Arizona

Wildfires in Arizona

By Elijah Mt. Castle
There are multiple fires burning north of Flagstaff Arizona. The fires are burning in Coconino National Forest. They threaten multiple communities, schools, and cultural landmarks.
The Pipeline fire started on the 12th of June. It has burned over 20,000 acres. The cause of the fire is currently under investigation; however, one person has been arrested by the U.S. Forest Service in connection to the fire. The Pipeline fire caused the evacuation of over 2,000 homes in the surrounding area. The fire is now 33% contained and only one home has been destroyed.
The Haywire fire started on 12th as well. The cause is also unknown, but it is suspected that it was caused by lightning from a passing storm. It has burned over 5,000 acres. The fire has caused around 280 evacuations. The haywire has merged with the Double fire that started around the same time. The fire is not contained.
Pictured are the VNF detections for June 13th – 15th, 2022. Also pictured are the SNPP VIIRS Day/night Radiances for June 13th.
June 15, 2022