Space.com

California's Caldor Fire seen from space in harrowing satellite images (gallery)

It's one of the biggest fires in California history.

By
published
in News
Caldor Fire nears Lake Tahoe
(Image credit: NASA Earth Observatory images by Lauren Dauphin, using MODIS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE and GIBS/Worldview,VIIRS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE, GIBS/Worldview, and the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership, and Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey.)

Caldor Fire nears Lake Tahoe

The Caldor Fire, one of the largest in California's history, has been blazing in El Dorado County since Aug. 14, 2021. 

It has since burned more than 200,000 acres of land and is now progressing toward the border of Nevada, near Lake Tahoe, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. See satellite images of the growing fire in this Space.com gallery. 

The image above, captured Aug. 30 by NASA's Aqua satellite, shows smoke from the Caldor Fire encroaching on the southern portion of Lake Tahoe. 

Related: Record temperatures, fire clouds and drought ravage Earth in 2021

Caldor Fire on Aug. 17
(Image credit: Pierre Markuse/ESA/Copernicus Sentinel 2021/CC BY 2.0)

Caldor Fire on Aug. 17

An early view of the Caldor Fire, captured Aug. 17, shows the flames and smoke cutting across the dry California landscape. At the time, the fire was about 24 miles (38 kilometers) wide.

Caldor Fire on Aug. 30
(Image credit: NOAA)

Caldor Fire on Aug. 30

NOAA's GOES 17 satellite captured this image of the raging Caldor Fire on Aug. 30, 2021. The Caldor Fire had scorched nearly 200,000 acres of forest and land as of Aug. 31, 2021. Residents of towns near South Lake Tahoe were evacuated as the blaze spread.

The Dixie Fire is still burning, too.
(Image credit: NASA Earth Observatory images by Lauren Dauphin, using MODIS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE and GIBS/Worldview,VIIRS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE, GIBS/Worldview, and the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership, and Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey.)

The Dixie Fire is still burning, too.

Meanwhile, as the Caldor Fire has taken the spotlight, another fire is raging in Northern California. The second-largest Californian fire on record — the Dixie Fire —continues to burn has burned over 800,000 acres since July 13, 2021. This image from NASA's Landsat 8 satellite shows smoke from the Dixie Fire on Aug. 28, 2021, blanketing the region north of the Caldor Fire.

Related: Satellite photos show Dixie Fire's devastation to California town in before-and-after views

More fires blaze to the north
(Image credit: NASA Earth Observatory images by Lauren Dauphin, using MODIS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE and GIBS/Worldview,VIIRS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE, GIBS/Worldview, and the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership, and Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey.)

More fires blaze to the north

Air quality across the western United States is posing risks to people due to the Caldor, Dixie and other fires. In this image, captured Aug. 29 by the NASA-NOAA Suomi NPP satellite, nine fires are seen burning across multiple western states.

Caldor Fire on Aug. 29
(Image credit: NASA Earth Observatory images by Lauren Dauphin, using MODIS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE and GIBS/Worldview,VIIRS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE, GIBS/Worldview, and the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership, and Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey.)

Caldor Fire on Aug. 29

South of Lake Tahoe in California, the Caldor Fire continues to burn, spewing smoke across the region. This image was processed by citizen scientist Pierre Markuse using data aquired by the European Space Agency's Copernicus Sentinel mission on Aug. 29, 2021. 

Caldor Fire on Aug. 29
(Image credit: Pierre Markuse/ESA/Copernicus Sentinel 2021/CC BY 2.0)

Caldor Fire on Aug. 29

In this satellite image aquired on Aug. 29, 2021, the Caldor Fire's smoke plume veils the region south of Lake Tahoe.

Caldor Fire on Aug. 24
(Image credit: Pierre Markuse/ESA/Copernicus Sentinel 2021/CC BY 2.0)

Caldor Fire on Aug. 24

On Aug. 24, 2021, the Caldor Fire continues to burn across the region south of Lake Tahoe. 

Caldor Fire on Aug. 24
(Image credit: Pierre Markuse/ESA/Copernicus Sentinel 2021/CC BY 2.0)

Caldor Fire on Aug. 24

The Caldor Fire, burning just south of Lake Tahoe, broke out on Aug. 14, 2021, and was only 20% contained as of Sept. 1. This image was processed by citizen scientist Pierre Markuse using data aquired by the European Space Agency's Copernicus Sentinel mission on Aug. 24, 2021.

Caldor Fire on Aug. 22
(Image credit: Pierre Markuse/ESA/Copernicus Sentinel 2021/CC BY 2.0)

Caldor Fire on Aug. 22

As of Aug. 22, 2021, the Caldor Fire was blanketing the area with thick smoke as well as forcing residents in its path to flee.

Caldor Fire on Aug. 22
(Image credit: Pierre Markuse/ESA/Copernicus Sentinel 2021/CC BY 2.0)

Caldor Fire on Aug. 22

Strong winds and low humidity pushed the Caldor Fire to spread over the ridge of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Several more California counties had to be evacuated because of the spread.

Caldor Fire on Aug. 19
(Image credit: Pierre Markuse/ESA/Copernicus Sentinel 2021/CC BY 2.0)

Caldor Fire on Aug. 19

Smoke and clouds above and around the Caldor Fire block views of the ground almost completely. This enormous fire began August 14, 2021 and as of August 31, has scorched just over 190,000 acres.