Fire near Kunene (AO)

16.76°S, 16.28°E · first detected on 21 October at 13:02

What the satellites measured

This fire was tracked from 21 October at 13:02 to 23 October at 16:54, that is 2 days, through 47 satellite detections. The detected extent reaches 1,071 ha.

Detected extent: 1,071 ha
Cumulative power: 935 MW
Peak power, one pixel: 91 MW
VIIRS and MODIS detections: 47
Estimated emissions: 3.2 kt of carbon; Carbon burnt in the 0.1 degree cells (about 10 km) around the fire, from 21 October 2026 to 23 October 2026. An order-of-magnitude estimate from GFAS (ECMWF, Copernicus CAMS): it also counts neighbouring fires in the same cell. Contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information (2026).

These four figures cover the polar orbits alone, the ones that measure an area. The pass table below also counts geostationary detections, more frequent but too coarse for geometry, and its power column sums a whole pass where the peak above is that of a single pixel.

“Detected extent” is not “burned area”: it is the union of the ground footprints of the satellite pixels, and a pixel counts in full (375 m for VIIRS, 1 km for MODIS) even when only a forest edge is burning. Compared with press figures it is in practice one and a half to three times the area reported. Detections taken at the edge of the scan swath, too coarse to measure anything at all, are excluded. These figures come from thermal detection and are not an official assessment: only the emergency services and the competent authorities are authoritative.

Replay how the fire spread

The map is framed on this fire's footprint and loads only its detections. The timeline below covers the period in which satellites saw it, from the first to the last detection, with twelve hours before and twenty-four after; the ticks on the bar mark the emergency services' announcements that fall within it. The cursor opens on the most powerful pass, and playback replays the whole fire in about thirty seconds. “1 h” shows what is burning within an hour of the chosen moment : the map then follows the power curve below and empties when it falls. “24 h” stacks twenty-four hours : a fire stays visible between two satellite passes, which come two to four times a day. Both are true, but they say different things.

How the radiative power evolved

One point per satellite pass: the sum of the fire radiative power measured over the fire. This is the curve that says whether the fire eased off or picked up again, which no cumulative figure shows. The window covers 5 days; beyond that, clustering would merge two successive fires in the same place.

Fire dynamics

Loading history…

Satellite passes in detail

Pass	Power summed over the pass	Detections	Sensor
24 October at 12:52	127 MW	3	Met12
24 October at 12:42	336 MW	6	Met12
24 October at 12:22	43 MW	2	Met12
23 October at 18:34	34 MW	1	Met10
23 October at 18:32	60 MW	4	Met12
23 October at 18:22	83 MW	5	Met12
23 October at 18:20	33 MW	1	Met9
23 October at 18:19	68 MW	2	Met10
23 October at 18:12	76 MW	5	Met12
23 October at 18:05	78 MW	2	Met9
23 October at 18:04	125 MW	3	Met10
23 October at 18:02	94 MW	5	Met12
23 October at 17:52	63 MW	3	Met12
23 October at 17:50	181 MW	3	Met9
23 October at 17:49	282 MW	4	Met10
23 October at 17:42	53 MW	3	Met12
23 October at 17:35	40 MW	1	Met9
23 October at 17:34	70 MW	2	Met10
23 October at 17:32	68 MW	3	Met12
23 October at 17:22	45 MW	2	Met12
23 October at 17:20	114 MW	2	Met9
23 October at 17:19	243 MW	5	Met10
23 October at 17:12	187 MW	6	Met12
23 October at 17:04	243 MW	5	Met10
23 October at 17:04	113 MW	2	Met9
23 October at 17:02	43 MW	3	Met12
23 October at 16:54	43 MW	3	Aqua
23 October at 16:52	13 MW	1	Met12
23 October at 16:49	49 MW	1	Met10
23 October at 16:49	88 MW	2	Met9
23 October at 16:42	41 MW	3	Met12
23 October at 16:34	47 MW	1	Met9
23 October at 16:34	55 MW	1	Met10
23 October at 16:32	67 MW	4	Met12
23 October at 16:22	30 MW	2	Met12
23 October at 16:19	50 MW	1	Met9
23 October at 16:19	59 MW	1	Met10
23 October at 16:12	57 MW	2	Met12
23 October at 16:04	170 MW	2	Met10
23 October at 16:04	142 MW	2	Met9
23 October at 16:02	221 MW	6	Met12
23 October at 15:52	95 MW	4	Met12
23 October at 15:49	187 MW	2	Met9
23 October at 15:49	190 MW	2	Met10
23 October at 15:42	127 MW	5	Met12
23 October at 15:34	52 MW	1	Met10
23 October at 15:32	22 MW	2	Met12
23 October at 15:31	71 MW	6	N20
23 October at 15:22	26 MW	2	Met12
23 October at 15:19	125 MW	2	Met9
23 October at 15:19	132 MW	2	Met10
23 October at 15:12	60 MW	4	Met12
23 October at 15:12	75 MW	4	N
23 October at 14:52	14 MW	1	Met12
23 October at 14:34	26 MW	3	N21
23 October at 14:22	12 MW	1	Met12
23 October at 14:12	33 MW	2	Met12
23 October at 14:02	18 MW	1	Met12
23 October at 13:52	77 MW	4	Met12
23 October at 13:51	75 MW	10	N20
23 October at 13:49	67 MW	1	Met9
23 October at 13:42	86 MW	4	Met12
23 October at 13:34	96 MW	1	Met10
23 October at 13:34	185 MW	2	Met9
23 October at 13:32	121 MW	4	Met12
23 October at 13:22	152 MW	6	Met12
23 October at 13:19	198 MW	2	Met9
23 October at 13:19	189 MW	2	Met10
23 October at 13:12	180 MW	5	Met12
23 October at 13:04	147 MW	2	Met9
23 October at 13:04	70 MW	1	Met10
23 October at 13:02	132 MW	6	Met12
23 October at 12:52	85 MW	4	Met12
23 October at 12:49	77 MW	1	Met9
23 October at 12:42	23 MW	2	Met12
23 October at 12:32	105 MW	4	Met12
23 October at 12:22	23 MW	2	Met12
23 October at 12:12	64 MW	4	Met12
23 October at 12:02	30 MW	2	Met12
23 October at 11:52	21 MW	2	Met12
22 October at 16:12	10 MW	1	Met12
22 October at 16:04	52 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 16:02	16 MW	1	Met12
22 October at 15:52	10 MW	1	Met12
22 October at 15:42	65 MW	2	Met12
22 October at 15:34	55 MW	1	Met9
22 October at 15:12	24 MW	1	Met12
22 October at 14:42	51 MW	2	Met12
22 October at 14:19	126 MW	1	Met9
22 October at 14:02	151 MW	6	Met12
22 October at 13:52	146 MW	5	Met12
22 October at 13:49	72 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 13:49	49 MW	3	N
22 October at 13:42	484 MW	9	Met12
22 October at 13:34	154 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 13:32	230 MW	8	Met12
22 October at 13:22	302 MW	10	Met12
22 October at 13:19	154 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 13:19	336 MW	2	Met9
22 October at 13:12	300 MW	9	Met12
22 October at 13:04	307 MW	2	Met9
22 October at 13:04	146 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 13:02	323 MW	9	Met12
22 October at 12:52	265 MW	7	Met12
22 October at 12:49	182 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 12:49	328 MW	2	Met9
22 October at 12:42	377 MW	7	Met12
22 October at 12:34	156 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 12:34	370 MW	2	Met9
22 October at 12:32	308 MW	6	Met12
21 October at 18:22	18 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 18:20	56 MW	2	Met9
21 October at 18:05	34 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 18:04	24 MW	1	Met10
21 October at 18:02	230 MW	5	Met12
21 October at 17:52	122 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 17:42	35 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 15:32	43 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 15:22	168 MW	6	Met12
21 October at 15:19	66 MW	1	Met10
21 October at 15:12	218 MW	10	N21
21 October at 15:12	176 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 15:04	151 MW	2	Met10
21 October at 15:04	91 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 15:02	205 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 14:52	177 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 14:49	261 MW	3	Met9
21 October at 14:49	116 MW	1	Met10
21 October at 14:27	40 MW	1	N20
21 October at 14:22	379 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 14:19	251 MW	2	Met10
21 October at 14:12	255 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 14:10	338 MW	7	N
21 October at 14:04	344 MW	4	Met10
21 October at 14:02	180 MW	6	Met12
21 October at 13:52	442 MW	6	Met12
21 October at 13:49	86 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 13:49	141 MW	2	Met10
21 October at 13:42	336 MW	7	Met12
21 October at 13:34	148 MW	2	Met10
21 October at 13:34	168 MW	2	Met9
21 October at 13:32	121 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 13:22	42 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 13:19	51 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 13:12	339 MW	6	Met12
21 October at 13:04	156 MW	2	Met9
21 October at 13:04	159 MW	2	Met10
21 October at 13:02	206 MW	5	Met12

8 other fires near Kunene (AO)

Separate fires, apart in time or in space, not pieces of this one. A single municipality can have several over one summer, and a forest massif often covers more than a hundred square kilometres.

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