Nine people have been killed in forest fires in Portugal, which continue to grow in the dry, hot conditions existing across the country. This image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Aqua satellite shows dozens of active fires detected by the sensor marked in red. The huge blazes concentrated in central Portugal are billowing a cloud of smoke that blankets most of the northern part of the country. This image was acquired on August 3, 2003.

The high-resolution image provided above is 500 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at MODIS? maximum spatial resolution of 250 meters.

Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC

Instrument: 

Aqua - MODIS