Fire near Mpumalanga (ZA)

24.37°S, 31.36°E · first detected on 21 October at 09:12

What the satellites measured

This fire was tracked from 21 October at 09:12 to 22 October at 14:08, through 212 satellite detections. The detected extent reaches 2,679 ha.

Detected extent: 2,679 ha
Cumulative power: 3,748 MW
Peak power, one pixel: 121 MW
VIIRS and MODIS detections: 212
Estimated emissions: 1.8 kt of carbon; Carbon burnt in the 0.1 degree cells (about 10 km) around the fire, from 21 October 2026 to 21 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 21 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 4 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
22 October at 14:08	7 MW	1	N20
22 October at 13:49	9 MW	1	N
22 October at 13:18	91 MW	1	Met9
22 October at 13:10	18 MW	1	N21
22 October at 13:03	99 MW	1	Met9
22 October at 12:48	119 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 12:48	103 MW	1	Met9
22 October at 12:33	235 MW	2	Met9
22 October at 12:33	159 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 12:32	160 MW	5	Met12
22 October at 12:22	154 MW	4	Met12
22 October at 12:18	266 MW	2	Met9
22 October at 12:18	295 MW	2	Met10
22 October at 12:12	87 MW	2	Met12
22 October at 12:03	215 MW	2	Met9
22 October at 12:03	225 MW	2	Met10
22 October at 11:48	118 MW	1	Met9
22 October at 11:48	210 MW	2	Met10
22 October at 11:42	44 MW	2	Met12
22 October at 11:33	220 MW	2	Met10
22 October at 11:33	212 MW	2	Met9
22 October at 11:18	188 MW	2	Met10
22 October at 11:18	196 MW	2	Met9
22 October at 11:12	62 MW	2	Met12
22 October at 11:03	418 MW	3	Met9
22 October at 11:03	116 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 11:02	144 MW	3	Met12
22 October at 10:52	79 MW	2	Met12
22 October at 10:48	386 MW	3	Met10
22 October at 10:48	397 MW	3	Met9
22 October at 10:42	85 MW	2	Met12
22 October at 10:33	325 MW	3	Met10
22 October at 10:33	354 MW	3	Met9
22 October at 10:32	117 MW	3	Met12
22 October at 10:18	229 MW	3	Met10
22 October at 10:18	102 MW	1	Met9
22 October at 10:12	10 MW	1	Met12
22 October at 10:03	94 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 10:03	95 MW	1	Met9
22 October at 09:48	79 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 09:48	76 MW	1	Met9
22 October at 09:33	72 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 09:18	75 MW	1	Met9
22 October at 01:39	3 MW	3	N20
22 October at 01:20	3 MW	5	N
22 October at 00:44	8 MW	7	N21
21 October at 21:22	10 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 20:02	23 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 19:12	14 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 19:04	56 MW	2	Met9
21 October at 19:03	41 MW	1	Met10
21 October at 19:02	11 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 18:52	23 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 18:49	103 MW	3	Met9
21 October at 18:48	55 MW	1	Met10
21 October at 18:42	16 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 18:34	104 MW	3	Met9
21 October at 18:33	60 MW	1	Met10
21 October at 18:32	20 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 18:22	17 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 18:19	150 MW	4	Met9
21 October at 18:18	108 MW	2	Met10
21 October at 18:12	76 MW	3	Met12
21 October at 18:04	218 MW	4	Met9
21 October at 18:03	148 MW	2	Met10
21 October at 18:02	68 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 17:52	167 MW	3	Met12
21 October at 17:49	302 MW	4	Met9
21 October at 17:48	264 MW	3	Met10
21 October at 17:42	101 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 17:34	342 MW	4	Met9
21 October at 17:33	344 MW	4	Met10
21 October at 17:32	130 MW	3	Met12
21 October at 17:19	303 MW	4	Met9
21 October at 17:18	338 MW	4	Met10
21 October at 17:12	122 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 17:04	273 MW	4	Met9
21 October at 17:03	259 MW	3	Met10
21 October at 17:02	39 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 16:49	229 MW	4	Met9
21 October at 16:48	300 MW	5	Met10
21 October at 16:42	11 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 16:33	237 MW	4	Met9
21 October at 16:33	256 MW	3	Met10
21 October at 16:22	17 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 16:18	168 MW	3	Met9
21 October at 16:18	226 MW	3	Met10
21 October at 15:02	45 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 14:52	342 MW	7	Met12
21 October at 14:48	840 MW	5	Met9
21 October at 14:42	1,113 MW	10	Met12
21 October at 14:33	1,342 MW	7	Met9
21 October at 14:33	1,304 MW	5	Met10
21 October at 14:32	737 MW	11	Met12
21 October at 14:25	830 MW	49	N20
21 October at 14:22	644 MW	11	Met12
21 October at 14:18	748 MW	4	Met10
21 October at 14:18	781 MW	7	Met9
21 October at 14:12	944 MW	12	Met12
21 October at 14:06	685 MW	50	N
21 October at 14:03	915 MW	6	Met9
21 October at 14:03	926 MW	5	Met10
21 October at 14:02	728 MW	11	Met12
21 October at 13:52	618 MW	12	Met12
21 October at 13:48	1,183 MW	5	Met10
21 October at 13:48	1,168 MW	7	Met9
21 October at 13:42	792 MW	15	Met12
21 October at 13:33	1,113 MW	7	Met9
21 October at 13:33	1,207 MW	6	Met10
21 October at 13:32	912 MW	15	Met12
21 October at 13:30	744 MW	43	N21
21 October at 13:22	1,067 MW	17	Met12
21 October at 13:18	1,479 MW	8	Met9
21 October at 13:18	1,408 MW	4	Met10
21 October at 13:12	1,075 MW	12	Met12
21 October at 13:03	2,120 MW	6	Met10
21 October at 13:03	2,142 MW	9	Met9
21 October at 13:02	2,012 MW	17	Met12
21 October at 12:52	1,615 MW	15	Met12
21 October at 12:48	1,858 MW	7	Met9
21 October at 12:48	2,118 MW	7	Met10
21 October at 12:45	1,441 MW	52	N20
21 October at 12:42	1,227 MW	13	Met12
21 October at 12:33	1,781 MW	6	Met9
21 October at 12:33	1,441 MW	5	Met10
21 October at 12:32	1,440 MW	14	Met12
21 October at 12:22	1,133 MW	14	Met12
21 October at 12:18	1,743 MW	6	Met10
21 October at 12:18	1,536 MW	6	Met9
21 October at 12:12	1,663 MW	19	Met12
21 October at 12:03	1,280 MW	6	Met10
21 October at 12:03	1,219 MW	7	Met9
21 October at 12:02	790 MW	14	Met12
21 October at 11:52	366 MW	8	Met12
21 October at 11:48	717 MW	7	Met9
21 October at 11:48	824 MW	7	Met10
21 October at 11:42	610 MW	10	Met12
21 October at 11:33	268 MW	3	Met9
21 October at 11:33	278 MW	3	Met10
21 October at 11:32	159 MW	4	Met12
21 October at 11:22	47 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 11:18	78 MW	1	Met9
21 October at 11:18	173 MW	2	Met10
21 October at 11:03	61 MW	1	Met10
21 October at 10:52	28 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 10:48	231 MW	4	Met10
21 October at 10:42	27 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 10:33	179 MW	3	Met10
21 October at 10:18	55 MW	1	Met10
21 October at 10:12	18 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 10:03	69 MW	1	Met10
21 October at 10:02	11 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 09:52	18 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 09:48	61 MW	1	Met10
21 October at 09:42	34 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 09:32	37 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 09:22	10 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 09:12	14 MW	1	Met12

8 other fires near Mpumalanga (ZA)

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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