December 5, 2022 - Burn Scars in Sudan and South Sudan

Burn Scars
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On November 28, 2022, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer
(MODIS) on board NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a remarkable
false-color image showing burn scars scattered southern Sudan and
northwestern South Sudan.

Most of the land visible belongs to South Sudan, including the wetlands
near the White Nile River and rich agricultural lands to the west of
the wetlands. To the north, the landscape of Sudan changes rapidly from
the green at the border with South Sudan to more arid land at the edge
of the Sahara Desert.

By using visible and near-infrared light (bands 7,2,1) burn scars –
which may appear black, brown, or brick red - stand out in stark
contrast to vegetation, which appears bright green. Open land appears
tan, deep water is colored deep blue and clouds, when present, may
appear either white or tinted with electric blue. The color variation
in burn scars depends on type of vegetation burned, the completeness of
the burn, the amount of residue remaining after the burn, and the age
of the burn. Fresh burn scars most often appear black or brick red,
while older scars, where vegetation has begun to regrow, become lighter
and eventually tinted with green.

In this image, burn scars are abundant across all of the bright green
(vegetated) areas, especially along the Sudan-South Sudan border, while
the vegetation near the darkly-colored waters of the White Nile and
associated wetlands show little scarring. The heavily-burned areas sit
in the location where traditional agriculture is practiced. Farmers in
this location have used fire to clear new land for fresh cropping, to
clear stubble from harvested fields in preparation for planting the
next crop, and to renew pasture for centuries. The multiple shades of
burn scars give evidence of fires burning in this area over many years.

Image Facts
Satellite: Terra
Date Acquired: 11/28/2022
Resolutions: 1km (316.7 KB), 500m (810.2 KB), 250m (507.4
KB)
Bands Used: 7,2,1
Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC



https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2022-12-05

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