Recorded by satellite today.
A thermal anomaly is a snapshot of one satellite pass, not a record of a fire’s life: we cannot say whether it kept burning after that pass.
No stronger detection stands among the 9 recorded within 20 km of this point since 16 July 2026 — one other scored the same. Another comparable one was recorded here earlier the same day.
What the source measured
NASA FIRMS (VIIRS) reported 19 fire pixels with a combined fire radiative power of 1087 MW, at high confidence, 2 km from Marapong.
The 19 pixels cover about 2.7 km² — that is the footprint of the detection grid at 375 m resolution, not an estimate of how much land burned.
FIRMS does not report burned area, and neither do we.
An estimated 34,927 people live within 20 km of this point.
Wind from NE at 15 km/h at 17:00 UTC, according to MET Norway.
Nearby, since 16 July 2026
- September 2, 2026 · score 69 · 0.3 km
- July 16, 2026 · score 39 · 11.8 km
- August 5, 2026 · score 39 · 13.3 km
How we know
One source: NASA FIRMS (VIIRS). Not yet confirmed by a second, independent source.
Our own score for this event is 69 out of 100, at 84 % confidence.
The score is ours, computed from intensity, exposed population and local history — not the source’s.
Wind: MET Norway Locationforecast, CC BY 4.0.
Computed under scoring rules v4. Rows carrying other versions were judged by different rules and are not directly comparable.
Event Data
| Type | Wildfires |
| Severity | Critical |
| Calamity Score (ours) | 69 / 100 |
| Our confidence | 84% |
| Coordinates | -23.6418, 27.6118 |
| Nearest City | Marapong (2 km) |
| Population Exposed | 34.9K within 20 km |
| Impact Tier | significant |
| Timestamp | 2026-09-02T11:47:00.000Z |
| Source | https://firms.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/map/#d:24hrs;@27.612,-23.642,9z |
Score Breakdown
Technical Details
| Brightness | 367 |
| Frp | 1087.15 |
| PixelCount | 19 |
| Confidence | high |
Cascade Risks
Safety Information
If a wildfire is approaching: follow evacuation orders immediately. Do not wait to see the fire. Close all windows and doors, remove combustible materials from around your home, and have an emergency go-bag ready. Air quality can deteriorate rapidly even at distance from the fire front — monitor local air quality advisories.
Series begins 8 March 2026. Comparisons refer to that period only. Collection gap: 14-26 August 2026.
This data is aggregated algorithmically from scientific sources. Not a replacement for official emergency warnings.
Want to know when something happens near Marapong?
In the news nearby
A list of links found by GDELT for this place and this hazard in the last seven days. External, not ours: we have not read them and do not vouch for them.
GDELT did not answer when this page was rendered, so no news is listed.
GDELT Project · gdeltproject.org
Calamity.live data shows a fire event with CalamityScore 69/100, near Marapong (South Africa), based on data from firms. Source: Calamity.live, a platform aggregating real-time data from 185 scientific monitoring sources.