MSGID: 1:317/3 6292632d   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   May 28, 2022 - Blazes Continue to Scorch New Mexico   
      
      New Mexico   
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      Fueled by high temperatures, low humidity, gusting winds, and a   
      lingering two-decade megadrought, multiple large fires have more than a   
      half-million acres in New Mexico as of May 27, 2022. A "Fuels and Fire   
      Behavior Advisory" released by the National Interagency Fire Center on   
      May 18 summed up the cause of the disastrous fire season this way,   
      “expanding drought conditions coupled with very hot and dry weather,   
      extreme wind events, and unstable atmospheric conditions have led to   
      explosive fire behavior in the region.” In parts of Arizona and New   
      Mexico, “conditions like this have not been seen since the mid-1950s.”   
      The situation has not improved since that advisory. On May 19, the U.S.   
      Drought Monitor reported that at least 85 percent of New Mexico was   
      experiencing extreme to exceptional drought—and on May 26, an updated   
      report stated that New Mexico received little or no precipitation in   
      the last week.   
      
      On May 26, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on   
      board NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired a true-color image of two fires   
      burning in southwestern New Mexico. Each red “hot spot” marks an area   
      where the thermal bands on the MODIS instrument detected high   
      temperatures. In this case, the hot spots are caused by actively   
      burning fire.   
      
      A large blacked area (burn scar) can be seen in the lower section of   
      the image, and two lines of active fire flank the burn scar. This is   
      the Black Fire, which ignited on May 13 in the Aldo Leopold Wilderness   
      Area about 30 miles northwest of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. On   
      May 16, the fire “blew up” – a term indicating a sudden increase in   
      fire intensity or rate of spread—to triple in size. The Black Fire’s   
      blow-up increased the size from 18,000 acres to more than 56,000 acres   
      as it crossed the Continental Divide.   
      
      On May 22, the Black Fire became the second-largest fire burning in New   
      Mexico, covering 130,000 acres. By May 27, the acreage burnt increased   
      to 191,459 and, according to a report on InciWeb Incident Information   
      System, the fire was averaging an increase of 15,000 acres a day.   
      Increasingly hot, dry, and breezy winds out of the west-southwest are   
      expected to increase torching, spotting, and fire activity over the   
      next few days, despite firefighters working day and night to suppress   
      the extremely active fire. The National Interagency Fire Center notes   
      that 51 structures are at risk, with 2 structures destroyed. The Black   
      Fire was only 13 percent contained as of May 27.   
      
      A smaller fire, the Bear Trap Fire, burns to the northeast of the Black   
      Fire. This fire started on May 1, in timber located about 22 miles   
      southwest of Magdalena, New Mexico. As of May 27, the fire scorched   
      38,091 Acres and was 41 percent contained. The cause of the fire is   
      under investigation.   
      
      Image Facts   
      Satellite:  Aqua   
      Date Acquired: 5/26/2022   
      Resolutions:  1km (32.6 KB),  500m (114.2 KB),  250m (381.1   
      KB)   
      Bands Used: 1,4,3   
      Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC   
      
      
      
   https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2022-05-28   
       
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