Fire near Luapula (ZM)

11.43°S, 30.15°E · first detected on 22 September at 13:15

What the satellites measured

This fire was tracked from 22 September at 13:15 to 21 October at 15:40, that is 29 days, through 1,267 satellite detections. The detected extent reaches 19,745 ha.

Detected extent: 19,745 ha
Cumulative power: 9,179 MW
Peak power, one pixel: 53 MW
VIIRS and MODIS detections: 1,267
Estimated emissions: 10.2 kt of carbon; Carbon burnt in the 0.1 degree cells (about 10 km) around the fire, from 5 October 2026 to 20 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). Published data stop on 20 October 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 30 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
21 October at 18:50	18 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 18:35	13 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 18:05	19 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 17:50	22 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 17:43	27 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 17:35	23 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 17:33	26 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 17:23	32 MW	3	Met12
21 October at 17:20	38 MW	2	Met9
21 October at 17:13	30 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 17:05	57 MW	2	Met9
21 October at 17:05	64 MW	2	Met10
21 October at 17:03	29 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 16:53	53 MW	3	Met12
21 October at 16:50	71 MW	2	Met10
21 October at 16:50	37 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 16:43	55 MW	3	Met12
21 October at 16:35	64 MW	2	Met9
21 October at 16:35	34 MW	1	Met10
21 October at 16:33	66 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 16:23	77 MW	5	Met12
21 October at 16:20	50 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 16:13	99 MW	6	Met12
21 October at 16:05	20 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 16:03	78 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 15:53	84 MW	5	Met12
21 October at 15:50	110 MW	4	Met9
21 October at 15:43	76 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 15:40	175 MW	9	Aqua
21 October at 15:35	26 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 15:33	96 MW	6	Met12
21 October at 15:23	66 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 15:13	83 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 15:05	96 MW	3	Met9
21 October at 15:03	84 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 14:53	93 MW	5	Met12
21 October at 14:50	115 MW	3	Met9
21 October at 14:43	60 MW	3	Met12
21 October at 14:35	150 MW	4	Met9
21 October at 14:33	35 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 14:29	98 MW	10	N20
21 October at 14:23	12 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 14:20	87 MW	2	Met9
21 October at 14:13	43 MW	3	Met12
21 October at 14:10	190 MW	32	N
21 October at 14:05	114 MW	3	Met9
21 October at 14:03	19 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 13:53	14 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 13:50	77 MW	2	Met9
21 October at 13:43	10 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 13:35	80 MW	2	Met9
21 October at 13:34	203 MW	29	N21
21 October at 13:33	41 MW	3	Met12
21 October at 13:13	13 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 13:05	163 MW	3	Met9
21 October at 13:03	48 MW	3	Met12
21 October at 12:53	38 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 12:50	166 MW	4	Met9
21 October at 12:49	40 MW	5	N20
21 October at 12:43	39 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 12:35	52 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 12:13	10 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 12:04	66 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 12:03	11 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 11:53	14 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 11:43	23 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 11:34	45 MW	1	Met10
21 October at 11:33	24 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 11:23	16 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 17:43	11 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 17:23	13 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 17:13	18 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 16:53	21 MW	2	Met12
20 October at 16:43	41 MW	2	Met12
20 October at 16:33	45 MW	3	Met12
20 October at 16:23	92 MW	6	Met12
20 October at 16:13	139 MW	8	Met12
20 October at 16:05	78 MW	2	Met9
20 October at 16:03	119 MW	6	Met12
20 October at 15:53	90 MW	6	Met12
20 October at 15:43	111 MW	7	Met12
20 October at 15:33	63 MW	3	Met12
20 October at 15:23	84 MW	2	Met12
20 October at 13:51	158 MW	27	N21
20 October at 13:08	20 MW	2	N20
19 October at 16:01	28 MW	4	Aqua
19 October at 15:03	26 MW	2	Met12
19 October at 14:53	32 MW	2	Met12
19 October at 14:33	45 MW	2	Met12
19 October at 14:23	24 MW	1	Met12
19 October at 14:10	73 MW	7	N21
19 October at 13:26	52 MW	8	N20
19 October at 13:08	10 MW	3	N
19 October at 11:49	74 MW	1	Met9
19 October at 11:34	75 MW	1	Met9
19 October at 11:19	76 MW	1	Met9
19 October at 11:04	73 MW	1	Met9
19 October at 10:49	62 MW	1	Met9
18 October at 16:50	15 MW	1	Met9
18 October at 16:35	36 MW	2	Met9
18 October at 16:33	21 MW	2	Met12
18 October at 16:20	17 MW	1	Met9
18 October at 16:13	21 MW	2	Met12
18 October at 16:05	51 MW	2	Met9
18 October at 16:03	56 MW	5	Met12
18 October at 15:53	55 MW	4	Met12
18 October at 15:50	51 MW	2	Met9
18 October at 15:43	61 MW	4	Met12
18 October at 15:35	61 MW	2	Met9
18 October at 15:33	66 MW	4	Met12
18 October at 15:25	47 MW	2	Aqua
18 October at 15:23	41 MW	3	Met12
18 October at 15:20	24 MW	1	Met9
18 October at 15:13	58 MW	4	Met12
18 October at 15:05	55 MW	2	Met9
18 October at 15:03	16 MW	1	Met12
18 October at 14:53	33 MW	2	Met12
18 October at 14:50	45 MW	1	Met9
18 October at 14:33	11 MW	1	Met12
18 October at 14:13	12 MW	1	Met12
18 October at 14:05	41 MW	1	Met9
18 October at 14:03	31 MW	2	Met12
18 October at 13:53	20 MW	1	Met12
18 October at 13:47	192 MW	33	N20
18 October at 13:43	18 MW	1	Met12
18 October at 13:33	23 MW	2	Met12
18 October at 13:25	242 MW	28	N
18 October at 13:23	12 MW	1	Met12
18 October at 12:49	127 MW	22	N21
17 October at 14:04	183 MW	26	N20
17 October at 13:45	204 MW	30	N
17 October at 13:08	131 MW	19	N21
17 October at 01:29	1 MW	1	N20
17 October at 01:09	1 MW	2	N
17 October at 00:33	1 MW	1	N21
16 October at 15:46	212 MW	17	Aqua
16 October at 14:23	209 MW	30	N20
16 October at 14:04	441 MW	55	N
16 October at 13:25	353 MW	48	N21
16 October at 12:43	60 MW	5	N20
16 October at 01:48	7 MW	6	N20
16 October at 01:31	11 MW	8	N
16 October at 00:52	11 MW	8	N21
15 October at 14:21	247 MW	38	N
15 October at 13:47	326 MW	37	N21
15 October at 13:02	200 MW	29	N20
15 October at 00:27	1 MW	1	N20
14 October at 20:36	13 MW	1	Terra
14 October at 16:10	71 MW	6	Aqua
14 October at 14:42	45 MW	6	N
14 October at 14:04	232 MW	34	N21
14 October at 13:19	209 MW	18	N20
14 October at 13:02	64 MW	11	N
13 October at 15:31	55 MW	3	Aqua
13 October at 14:23	53 MW	6	N21
13 October at 13:40	119 MW	24	N20
12 October at 13:02	123 MW	16	N21
11 October at 15:55	47 MW	7	Aqua
11 October at 14:17	9 MW	2	N20
11 October at 13:57	55 MW	12	N
11 October at 13:19	57 MW	8	N21
11 October at 01:41	1 MW	1	N20
10 October at 14:17	214 MW	26	N
10 October at 13:40	257 MW	48	N21
10 October at 12:56	134 MW	23	N20
10 October at 09:03	28 MW	1	Terra
10 October at 02:01	1 MW	2	N20
10 October at 01:03	7 MW	4	N21
9 October at 20:38	27 MW	4	Terra
9 October at 14:34	28 MW	2	N
9 October at 13:57	228 MW	28	N21
9 October at 13:13	229 MW	23	N20
9 October at 12:53	105 MW	13	N
9 October at 08:25	6 MW	1	Terra
9 October at 02:01	5 MW	2	N
9 October at 01:24	12 MW	5	N21
9 October at 00:40	7 MW	4	N20
8 October at 15:40	83 MW	3	Aqua
8 October at 14:17	36 MW	7	N21
8 October at 13:34	61 MW	14	N20
8 October at 13:15	50 MW	9	N
8 October at 12:36	9 MW	1	N21
7 October at 13:51	39 MW	6	N20
7 October at 13:32	57 MW	8	N
7 October at 12:56	49 MW	6	N21
6 October at 15:59	7 MW	1	Aqua
6 October at 13:51	12 MW	3	N
4 October at 14:27	6 MW	2	N
4 October at 13:51	73 MW	9	N21
4 October at 13:08	33 MW	4	N20
3 October at 13:08	5 MW	1	N
2 October at 13:47	3 MW	1	N20
30 September at 15:29	27 MW	2	Aqua
30 September at 14:21	23 MW	3	N20
30 September at 14:04	18 MW	3	N
30 September at 13:25	38 MW	6	N21
29 September at 14:21	31 MW	7	N
29 September at 13:47	56 MW	7	N21
29 September at 13:02	4 MW	1	N20
28 September at 15:53	139 MW	9	Aqua
28 September at 14:04	53 MW	10	N21
28 September at 13:19	52 MW	7	N20
27 September at 14:23	91 MW	7	N21
27 September at 13:40	53 MW	13	N20
27 September at 13:19	24 MW	4	N
26 September at 16:14	19 MW	1	Aqua
26 September at 13:57	79 MW	11	N20
26 September at 13:38	37 MW	8	N
26 September at 13:02	6 MW	1	N21
25 September at 15:37	136 MW	10	Aqua
25 September at 14:17	123 MW	16	N20
25 September at 13:57	137 MW	18	N
25 September at 13:19	100 MW	13	N21
24 September at 14:17	27 MW	4	N
24 September at 13:40	27 MW	6	N21
24 September at 12:56	2 MW	1	N20
23 September at 15:59	53 MW	5	Aqua
23 September at 14:34	10 MW	2	N
23 September at 13:57	32 MW	5	N21
23 September at 13:13	22 MW	4	N20
23 September at 12:53	5 MW	1	N

8 other fires near Luapula (ZM)

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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