MSGID: 1:317/3 627d4b4c   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   May 12, 2022 - New Mexico's Record-setting Fire Season Continues   
      
      New Mexico   
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      A blistering fire season in New Mexico continued to blaze on May 10,   
      2022, as the second-largest fire in the state’s history filled the sky   
      with thick gray smoke. On that same day, the Moderate Resolution   
      Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Aqua satellite   
      acquired a true-color image that showed a massive smoke plume rising   
      primarily from the Calf Canyon and Hermits Creek Fire complex and   
      blowing towards the northeast. The plume, which was so thick it   
      obscured the land beneath, stretched as much as 28 miles (44.4 km) wide   
      and spanned at least 210 miles (338 km) from the Sangre de Christo   
      mountains east of Santa Fe, New Mexico to north of the town of La   
      Junta, Colorado. A thinner veil of smoke, not visible in this image,   
      also covered parts of Kansas and Nebraska.   
      
      Many red “hot spots” mark areas where the thermal bands on the MODIS   
      instrument detected high temperatures. When combined with typical smoke   
      (as in this image) such hot spots mark actively burning fire.   
      
      Two small clusters of hot spots in the west, which are producing little   
      smoke, belong to the Cerro Pelado fire, which has consumed 43,376 acres   
      since it ignited on April 22 near Jemez Springs. As of May 15, it was   
      only 11 percent contained and had been under a Red Flag Warning for   
      five days in a row. Gusty south-southwest winds combined with low   
      relative humidity continue to lead to critical fire weather conditions   
      as more than 1,000 personnel fight this blaze.   
      
      To the east of that blaze, dozens of hot spots mark the multiple   
      actively burning edges of the expansive Calf Creek and Hermits Creek   
      Fire complex. The Calf Canyon fire began on April 19, and the cause is   
      under investigation. On April 6, the Hermits Peak fire began as a   
      prescribed burn in part of the Sant Fe National Forest, but erratic,   
      gusty winds blew it out of control. Strong winds on April 22-23 pushed   
      the fire through steep terrain and caused a merger with the Calf Canyon   
      fire, creating a fire complex with more than 180 miles of perimeter. On   
      May 2, the fire complex had scorched 120,653 acres in size. By May 7,   
      it had grown to 170,665 acres. Just four days later, on May 11, the   
      area burned reached 236,939 acres—an additional 66,274 acres—despite   
      the efforts of 1,863 personnel currently fighting the fire. The Calf   
      Canyon and Hermits Peak Fire complex is now the second-largest fire in   
      New Mexico history, just behind the Whitewater-Baldy Complex Fire which   
      scorched 297,845 acres in the Gila National Forest in 2012.   
      
      A third fire, the Cooks Creek Fire, sits to the northeast of the Calf   
      Canyon and Hermits Peak Fire complex. It may be adding to the thick   
      plume of smoke, but it is also obscured from view by that plume. The   
      fire ignited on April 17 and has burned 59,359 acres of ponderosa pine,   
      oak brush, and grass. On May 11 it reached 97 percent containment.   
      
      A May 11 briefing to fire personnel noted that April 2022 was the   
      second-driest April in northern New Mexico since 1895. This extremely   
      dry month, on top of an extended drought in the region, has combined   
      with high temperatures, low humidity, and strong, gusty winds to create   
      critical fire conditions. Unfortunately, the weather forecast does not   
      offer much relief. A Red Flag Warning will continue through at least   
      May 12, with maximum sustained winds of 25 to 35 mph and gusts to 40-45   
      mph. Maximum temperatures are expected to be in the mid-60s to the   
      mid-70s Fahrenheit in the lower elevations. Minimum relative humidity   
      values will be 5 to 14 percent.   
      
      Image Facts   
      Satellite:  Aqua   
      Date Acquired: 5/10/2022   
      Resolutions:  1km (202.5 KB),  500m (535.1 KB),  250m (1.3 MB)   
      Bands Used: 1,4,3   
      Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC   
      
      
      
   https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2022-05-12   
       
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