Fire near Occidentale (ZM)

16.06°S, 23.26°E · first detected on 6 September at 14:17

What the satellites measured

This fire was tracked from 6 September at 14:17 to 22 October at 16:16, that is at least 46 days: the clustering window stops there, and the fire or heat source may be older, through 1,358 satellite detections. The detected extent reaches 25,159 ha.

Detected extent: 25,159 ha
Cumulative power: 10,462 MW
Peak power, one pixel: 47 MW
VIIRS and MODIS detections: 1,358
Estimated emissions: 738 t of carbon; Carbon burnt in the 0.1 degree cells (about 10 km) around the fire, from 5 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.

Before, after: the burn scar seen from space

Sentinel-2 satellite image of the same area near Occidentale (ZM) during the fire, on 16 October 2026

Sentinel-2 satellite image of the area near Occidentale (ZM) before the fire, on 3 September 2026

Before · 3 September 2026During · 16 October 2026

Sentinel-2, 10 m resolution. No sufficiently clear pass has followed the fire going out yet: the second image was taken DURING the fire, so the burn scar had not finished spreading. It will be replaced automatically at the first clear sky. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel-2 data (2026).

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
22 October at 15:19	98 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 14:53	97 MW	10	N21
22 October at 14:10	190 MW	22	N20
22 October at 13:49	274 MW	36	N
22 October at 13:15	126 MW	19	N21
22 October at 12:52	28 MW	1	Met12
22 October at 12:49	110 MW	2	Met9
22 October at 12:49	87 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 12:42	29 MW	2	Met12
22 October at 12:34	78 MW	1	Met10
22 October at 12:34	49 MW	1	Met9
22 October at 12:32	72 MW	2	Met12
22 October at 12:02	16 MW	1	Met12
22 October at 11:42	21 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 14:42	19 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 14:27	78 MW	7	N20
21 October at 14:10	128 MW	17	N
21 October at 13:32	109 MW	12	N21
21 October at 12:52	13 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 12:32	23 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 11:52	11 MW	1	Met12
21 October at 10:22	34 MW	2	Met12
21 October at 01:37	2 MW	2	N
20 October at 16:22	12 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 16:12	26 MW	2	Met12
20 October at 16:03	11 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 16:02	25 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 15:52	83 MW	4	Met12
20 October at 15:42	15 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 15:34	52 MW	1	Met10
20 October at 15:34	53 MW	1	Met9
20 October at 15:32	62 MW	3	Met12
20 October at 15:22	45 MW	3	Met12
20 October at 15:02	67 MW	3	Met12
20 October at 14:49	242 MW	42	N20
20 October at 14:27	351 MW	35	N
20 October at 13:51	181 MW	11	N21
20 October at 13:42	37 MW	2	Met12
20 October at 13:23	24 MW	2	Met12
20 October at 13:13	12 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 13:12	15 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 13:02	15 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 12:52	12 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 11:32	25 MW	1	Met12
20 October at 01:20	1 MW	1	N21
19 October at 15:06	18 MW	2	N20
19 October at 14:46	167 MW	21	N
19 October at 14:10	223 MW	22	N21
19 October at 13:25	75 MW	15	N20
19 October at 01:37	1 MW	1	N21
19 October at 00:54	1 MW	1	N20
18 October at 15:06	90 MW	16	N
18 October at 14:27	320 MW	31	N21
18 October at 13:45	113 MW	15	N20
18 October at 13:25	69 MW	13	N
18 October at 01:12	2 MW	2	N20
17 October at 14:49	91 MW	14	N21
17 October at 14:04	192 MW	20	N20
17 October at 13:45	203 MW	18	N
17 October at 13:08	108 MW	11	N21
17 October at 08:44	21 MW	1	Terra
17 October at 02:16	1 MW	1	N21
17 October at 01:31	2 MW	1	N20
17 October at 01:12	2 MW	3	N
16 October at 14:21	289 MW	27	N20
16 October at 14:02	249 MW	26	N
16 October at 13:25	256 MW	35	N21
16 October at 01:50	2 MW	2	N20
15 October at 16:46	72 MW	2	Aqua
15 October at 14:42	112 MW	9	N20
15 October at 14:21	234 MW	26	N
15 October at 13:45	142 MW	10	N21
15 October at 02:09	5 MW	4	N20
15 October at 01:50	4 MW	5	N
15 October at 01:12	6 MW	5	N21
14 October at 16:10	54 MW	5	Aqua
14 October at 14:59	239 MW	26	N20
14 October at 14:40	369 MW	32	N
14 October at 14:04	134 MW	13	N21
14 October at 13:19	229 MW	20	N20
13 October at 14:59	51 MW	10	N
13 October at 14:21	116 MW	14	N21
13 October at 13:38	50 MW	6	N20
12 October at 16:29	6 MW	1	Aqua
12 October at 14:41	64 MW	11	N21
12 October at 08:46	9 MW	1	Terra
12 October at 02:09	1 MW	1	N21
11 October at 14:17	84 MW	11	N20
11 October at 13:55	39 MW	6	N
11 October at 13:19	8 MW	2	N21
11 October at 01:44	1 MW	1	N20
10 October at 14:34	89 MW	12	N20
10 October at 14:17	58 MW	10	N
10 October at 13:38	46 MW	5	N21
9 October at 14:55	47 MW	5	N20
9 October at 14:34	81 MW	9	N
9 October at 13:57	44 MW	9	N21
8 October at 14:17	40 MW	4	N21
7 October at 15:12	6 MW	1	N
7 October at 14:34	18 MW	3	N21
7 October at 13:50	35 MW	6	N20
7 October at 13:32	15 MW	3	N
6 October at 14:10	17 MW	5	N20
6 October at 13:49	7 MW	2	N
5 October at 14:27	34 MW	9	N20
5 October at 14:09	54 MW	15	N
5 October at 13:32	111 MW	13	N21
5 October at 09:07	8 MW	1	Terra
5 October at 01:56	1 MW	1	N20
4 October at 16:22	68 MW	8	Aqua
4 October at 14:49	59 MW	14	N20
4 October at 14:27	112 MW	17	N
4 October at 13:51	54 MW	7	N21
3 October at 15:06	11 MW	2	N20
3 October at 14:46	55 MW	7	N
3 October at 14:10	105 MW	13	N21
3 October at 13:25	89 MW	17	N20
3 October at 02:13	1 MW	1	N
3 October at 01:37	5 MW	6	N21
2 October at 15:06	69 MW	6	N
2 October at 14:27	112 MW	13	N21
2 October at 13:45	89 MW	16	N20
2 October at 13:25	33 MW	5	N
2 October at 01:56	1 MW	1	N21
1 October at 14:49	16 MW	2	N21
1 October at 14:04	55 MW	13	N20
1 October at 13:45	15 MW	2	N
1 October at 13:08	6 MW	1	N21
30 September at 14:21	29 MW	6	N20
30 September at 14:02	16 MW	3	N
30 September at 13:25	30 MW	6	N21
30 September at 01:29	1 MW	1	N
29 September at 14:40	37 MW	6	N20
29 September at 14:21	127 MW	31	N
29 September at 13:45	158 MW	26	N21
29 September at 01:50	1 MW	1	N
28 September at 14:59	3 MW	1	N20
28 September at 14:04	44 MW	8	N21
28 September at 13:19	4 MW	1	N20
27 September at 14:57	48 MW	9	N
27 September at 14:21	101 MW	15	N21
27 September at 13:38	41 MW	6	N20
27 September at 13:17	37 MW	6	N
26 September at 16:12	140 MW	11	Aqua
26 September at 14:42	165 MW	24	N21
26 September at 13:56	113 MW	14	N20
26 September at 13:38	131 MW	21	N
25 September at 14:17	75 MW	15	N20
25 September at 13:55	63 MW	5	N
25 September at 13:19	23 MW	5	N21
24 September at 16:35	35 MW	3	Aqua
24 September at 14:34	163 MW	16	N20
24 September at 14:17	181 MW	28	N
24 September at 13:38	117 MW	16	N21

8 other fires near Occidentale (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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