Fires in Arizona and New Mexico

Fires in Arizona and New Mexico

These infrared images of the Aspen Fire northeast of Tucson, Arizona, were acquired by the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on the Terra satellite on June 26, 2003. The scorched area shows up as deep purple, and the smoke is light blue. Naturally bare surfaces appear in shades of beige and pink. At bottom left in the full, high-resolution scene, the streets of Tucson make cross-hatched lines across the arid terrain, while at far upper right, green vegetation is growing along the banks of the San Pedro River.

Image courtesy Elsa Abbott.