Jesus, what the hell are you guys doing up there?
Heat signatures and some wisps of smoke from wildfires burning in Korean Peninsula are seen in the photo created by American commercial satellite, GFMC. While two forest fires and a normal fire have broken out in South Korea, it appears about 130 fires — possibly forest fires — are visible in the North.
BTW, you can pay the hardworking folk at Global Fire Monitoring Center a cyber-visit here.
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WELCOME to all those coming in from Instapundit, Lt. Smash and the Gweilo Diaries. Thanks for stopping by the Marmot’s Hole, where it’s Korea 24 hours a day, seven days a week. While you’re here, please pay visits to some of the other Korea bloggers listed to your right — they put up tons of quality stuff everyday. Anyway, thanks go to all who linked me (and Chief Wiggles), and especially the Oranckay, who’s not only an outstanding Korea blogger, but the guy who reminded me late last night to post the photo you see above here in the first place.
28 Comments
After looking at the big image posted by Jeff (thanks!), the orange blocks are superimposed over the original image, and are not actually part of the photo.
So, my original (two) posts where incorrect.
My Theory (c): The NorKors Girl Scouts are celebrating May Day by camping out. They are paying homage to the Glorious Leader by cooking s’mores over campfires.
My marshmellows ALWAYS catch on fire, they’re just having the same problem.
I don’t think this is nefarious. The big image posted by Jeff shows there is a similar area of fires NE of North Korea near the Russian-Chinese border. Also a picture taken on the 12th, http://www.fire.uni-freiburg.d.....12_kor.htm
shows that there was already quite a few fires a week ago.
I wonder how well the smoke works at obscuring “things” from spy satellites
We have a winner! Puff has (IMO) correctly deduced that the fires are an effort to render US satellite recon useless. The smoke could interfere with both IR and visible spectrum photographs. Such paranoid people. As for how effective it is, lets keep the NorKs guessing.
But don’t you run out of forests pretty quickly?
If this is a one-time ploy to cover up something, then what is it? Major troop movements?
These must be fake.
Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. However, rarely is there fire without smoke.
Doubtful you could see the orange colored flames from space. You’d only see smoke.
I think it’s the logical next step following years of drought. It’s not an explanation worth much to those who see North Korea as the be-all and end-all of evil in the world, but it’s the easiest explanation I can come up with.
I doubt it’s troop movements, since those can happen at night, via train, or some other way that doesn’t scream “Analyse this image!”
These must be fake.
Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. However, rarely is there fire without smoke.
Doubtful you could see the orange colored flames from space. You’d only see smoke.
These are fake. No smoke.
There are plenty of examples from less paranoid places than North Korea, like California
http://www.spaceimaging.com/ga.....fc_800.jpg
These are not necessarily fake. There is a system used for fire detection in the US that puts square boxes just like those shown for fires. Often there is no smoke visible. The colors indicate how recent - red is newest.
This may be an output from that system.
What’s all that white stuff then?
I Googled “GFMC satellite”. All I get are German websites.
That’s agricultural burning from a couple weeks ago. The orange color is added by the GFRC.
In the original full-size monster photo, you can see the smoke from each one, but the actual fire is marked with a big yellow-orange dot.
a full-size image:
http://www.fire.uni-freiburg.d....._large.jpg
Jeff–any link to the full-size photo, perchance?
Fascinating Jeff. Perhaps I was the paranoid one after all.
Sorry ’bout the multiple trackbacks…
How’s this for morbid?
They are burning piles of corpses of starved North Koreans.
Noticed quite a few hits south of Wonson and a couple near Myang-Do (big submarine base), but the big picture was a bit smaller scale and also showed quite a few boxes north of Vladivostok. The host site has lots of information on lots of stuff, so I am curious just what we are looking at before we try arm-chair imagary analysis.
Maybe they are burning the country to the ground. Not such a dumb move.
Hey, if they are, it saves us the effort, right?
In Thailand, and South Korea, it is still the practice to return nutrients to the soil by burning whatever’s left above the soil… and turning it under.
But this is BAD. NorK leadership can’t be happy with this, because (as pointed out above) it strips away too much forest, which leads to huge topsoil losses when the rains DO come, and flooding, and loss of life…
Maybe something good will come from this, but my heart goes out to the rank and file sufferers under this brutal, centralized, Stalinist regime!
The actual satellite photo that GMFC used to create their image was taken by an “American commercial satellite” company NASA. It was taken by the AQUA satellite on April 18th at 4:40 UTC.
You can find the photo and more like them at NASA’s secert public web site for the MODIS Rapid Response System web site. Here’s the link:
http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.....e/2004109/
If you have a broadband connection, download the 4.7 MB jpg file that has a resolution of 250m. Zoom in and get a good view of the area.
I can see why Parker is skeptical about the authenticity of GMFC’s photo. Compared to AQUA’s photo, GMFC’s photo is “too” clean.
Glad I came across your site. I taught English at a place called “(Das) English Camp” in Chonju back in 98′. Then the owner threatened to break my kneecaps if I didn’t work for free. Fun place, that Korea…I’ll be bookmarking your blog and checking in regularly.
Put my guess with ‘Sharps Shooter’. I think this is agricultural/rural areas practicing spring burning. My grandfather said his farmer grandfather did it regular every spring. When you don’t have fertilizer (or, enough fertilizer to go ’round) it’s the next best thing. Yes, it is long-term bad for the soil, but when you are worried about eating next winter you probably just let the long-term take care of itself.
Aren’t those white streaks the smoke from the fires, blowing east?
I would have thought they’d have cut down all the trees for fuel and such by now. I am surprised that there is anything left to burn.
I live here in central Texas and that photo looks just like the photos that are taken when Mexico burns their sugar crop. Some years it’s bad enough to make you choke and your eyes water for weeks at a time.
PING:
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Now here’s an interesting shot: According to the Chosun Ilbo about 130 fires are visible in the North.
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Still more weirdness from North Korea? Heat signatures and some wisps of smoke from wildfires burning in Korean Peninsula are seen in the photo created by American commercial satellite, GFMC. While two forest fires and a normal fire have broken…
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Maybe they can’t feed their people because the whole country is on fire. What a hell hole. (cheers to InstaPundit for the tip)
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Even Glenn Reynolds is taking more notice of Asia. Lots of interesting links from around Asia in the last few days, including two Instalanches… The first Instalanche is for Marmot’s interesting satellite picture of North Korea. “Where’s the fire?” Or…
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Even Glenn Reynolds is taking more notice of Asia. Lots of interesting links from around Asia in the last few days, including two Instalanches… The first Instalanche is for Marmot’s interesting satellite picture of North Korea. “Where’s the fire?” Or…
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Numerous fires rage in North Korea. Now what’s going on there?
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Still more weirdness from North Korea (via the Marmot). Heat signatures and some wisps of smoke from wildfires burning in Korean Peninsula are seen in the photo created by American commercial satellite, GFMC. While two forest fires and a normal…
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Tim Judah, a British freelance journalist, reports on his recent visit to North Korea. While life is still terrible for most North Koreans, it appears that the level of malnutrition has declined from its epidemic levels of several years ago. &nb…
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BLOG NAME: Brainysmurf
A picture of North Korea’s estimated 130 forest fires that’s been circulating on the internet for a few days (originally via the Marmot). Reminds me of a mere three decades ago when Sinologist’s only live hint of the devestation of the Cultural Revolut…
PING:
TITLE: What crack is Kim Jong-il smoking?
BLOG NAME: Brainysmurf
A picture of North Korea’s estimated 130 forest fires that’s been circulating on the internet for a few days (originally via the Marmot). Reminds me of a mere three decades ago when Sinologist’s only live hint of the devestation of the Cultural Revolut…
PING:
TITLE: What crack is Kim Jong-il smoking?
BLOG NAME: Brainysmurf
A picture of North Korea’s estimated 130 forest fires that’s been circulating on the internet for a few days (originally via the Marmot). Reminds me of a mere three decades ago when Sinologist’s only live hint of the devestation of the Cultural Revolut…
PING:
TITLE: What crack is Kim Jong-il smoking?
BLOG NAME: Brainysmurf
A picture of North Korea’s estimated 130 forest fires that’s been circulating on the internet for a few days (originally via the Marmot). Reminds me of a mere three decades ago when China watcher’s only live hint of the devestation of the Cultural Revo…
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TODAY’S NEWS, in haiku form: US troops attacked With deadly sarin nerve gas The press is silent. Iraq wedding guests…