Yosemite's massive wildfire continues to burn

The massive wildfire in Yosemite National Park has entered its fourth week as of September 7th. The park is located in the central eastern portion of the U.S. state of California and is one of the largest and least fragmented habitats in the Sierra Nevada, supporting a variety of plants and animals. So far it has cost an estimated 89 million to fight the wildfire that was the result of an illegal fire started by an unnamed hunter. The burnt areas in Yosemite have the potential of aiding the destruction of its ecosystems through areas such as erosion, mudslides, and flooding. The massive wildfire has also caused 5 square miles of one of the municipal reservoir watersheds, servicing 2.8 million people, to be in danger of contamination from falling ash. This has led to federal officials assembling a team of 50 scientists to assess environmental damage and perform countermeasures to restore damaged habitats and waterways. Alan Gallegos, one of the selected scientists, stated that "We evaluate what the potential for hazard and look at what's at risk --life, property, cultural resources, species habitat. Then we come up with a list of treatments." The burnt habitats and vulnerable water sources will be critical areas for the team to address in order to insure ecosystem reconstruction/preservation and clean water sources for millions of dependent citizens.

Visible image of California’s Rim Fire acquired Aug. 23, 2013 by the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) instrument on NASA’s Terra spacecraft.

The plume of carbon monoxide pollution from the Rim Fire burning in and near Yosemite National Park, Calif., is visible in this Aug. 26, 2013 image from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument on NASA’s Aqua spacecraft.