On April 18, 2006, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’a Terra satellite captured an image of numerous fires burning over Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula and northern Central America, including Guatemala and Honduras. The actively burning fires are marked in red. At lower right, clouds mingle with smoke over the Gulf of Honduras. At lower left, bright sunlight glints off the surface of the Pacific Ocean. February to May is the dry season in this part of the world, and these fires may be intentional agricultural fires set by people to prepare for the upcoming growing season, or they may be accidental forest fires.

The high-resolution image provided above has a spatial resolution of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response team produces daily imagery of Mesoamerica (southern Mexico and Central America) as part of the SERVIR project, which provides satellite imagery and other data sources for environmental management and disaster support in the region.

NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, Goddard Space Flight Center.