Persistent heat source near Hassi Messaoud, Algeria
Right now
The most recent data we hold from NASA FIRMS (VIIRS) arrived 7 minutes ago, and this point is not in it. We record detections, not passes: an absence is not proof that nothing is there.
6 other detections within 20 km in the last 24 hours, the nearest 6 km from here.
The satellite has seen heat at this spot on 26 earlier days since 13 March 2026, in 6 of the twelve months of the year. Heat that is there in every season usually comes from industry (a steelworks, a refinery flare, a gas field) or from routine burning, not from a wildfire. NASA's data do not say which.
356 satellite detections of this fire · 27 August – 18 October 2026
A satellite sees a burning fire on each of its passes. This page gathers every detection of this fire; the address of each one leads here.
| Day and time (UTC) | Radiative power | Distance from Hassi Messaoud |
|---|---|---|
| 18 Oct 11:57 | 860 MW | 14 km |
| 18 Oct 11:57 | 703 MW | 14 km |
| 18 Oct 02:21 | 799 MW | 15 km |
| 18 Oct 01:24 | 154 MW | 13 km |
| 18 Oct 01:24 | 646 MW | 16 km |
| 18 Oct 00:39 | 535 MW | 17 km |
| 17 Oct 13:01 | 433 MW | 14 km |
| 17 Oct 13:01 | 213 MW | 14 km |
| 17 Oct 13:01 | 609 MW | 16 km |
| 17 Oct 12:19 | 501 MW | 16 km |
| 17 Oct 01:43 | 402 MW | 15 km |
| 17 Oct 01:00 | 188 MW | 15 km |
| 17 Oct 01:00 | 283 MW | 17 km |
| 16 Oct 12:36 | 509 MW | 18 km |
| 16 Oct 12:36 | 167 MW | 22 km |
| 16 Oct 02:02 | 463 MW | 16 km |
| 16 Oct 01:17 | 370 MW | 18 km |
| 16 Oct 01:17 | 284 MW | 20 km |
| 15 Oct 12:55 | 759 MW | 13 km |
| 15 Oct 12:55 | 330 MW | 17 km |
| 15 Oct 02:21 | 454 MW | 10 km |
| 15 Oct 02:21 | 594 MW | 11 km |
| 15 Oct 02:21 | 736 MW | 12 km |
| 14 Oct 13:14 | 327 MW | 2 km |
| 14 Oct 13:14 | 291 MW | 8 km |
| 14 Oct 13:14 | 428 MW | 10 km |
| 14 Oct 12:19 | 280 MW | 0 km |
| 14 Oct 01:56 | 230 MW | 0 km |
| 14 Oct 01:00 | 117 MW | 1 km |
| 12 Oct 12:55 | 190 MW | 10 km |
and 326 earlier detections
This page covers the record dated 4 September 2026. Browse recent observations in this area:
Recorded by satellite 44 days ago.
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.
It is the 2nd strongest of the 74 detections recorded within 20 km of this point since 9 March 2026. Another comparable one was recorded here earlier the same day.
What the source measured
NASA FIRMS (VIIRS) reported 378 fire pixels with a combined fire radiative power of 2331 MW, at high confidence, 9 km from Hassi Messaoud.
The 378 pixels cover about 52.9 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.
Urban PEI: 36,781 within a heuristic 50 km radius; not unique people.
Nearby, since 9 March 2026
- March 14, 2026 · 0.0 km
- March 15, 2026 · 0.7 km
- March 9, 2026 · 2.5 km
How we know
One source: NASA FIRMS (VIIRS). Not yet confirmed by a second, independent source.
Our own score for this event is 55 out of 100.
This is our versioned heuristic index, not source severity or a calibrated probability. Urban PEI does not count unique people.
Computed under scoring rules v4. Rows carrying other versions were judged by different rules and are not directly comparable.
Archived as “Critical” under the rule in force until 4 October 2026, which read the radiative power and the people nearby. A satellite sees heat, not an emergency: since then every detection is shown as low or medium; this one as “Medium”.
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.
Event data
| Type | Persistent heat source |
| Severity | Medium |
| Calamity Score (ours) | 55 / 100 |
| Legacy data-support index | 0.74/1 |
| Coordinates | 31.6183, 6.0142 |
| Nearest city | Hassi Messaoud (9 km) |
| Urban exposure index (PEI) | 36.8K within 50 km |
| Impact tier | significant |
| Timestamp | 2026-09-04T13:08:00.000Z |
| Source | https://firms.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/map/#d:24hrs;@6.014,31.618,9z |
| Licence | US public domain (NASA) · NASA FIRMS (LANCE) |
Physical priority index · v4 (historical). Heuristic priority, not calibrated probability, predictive accuracy or damage. The legacy data-support index combines assigned source support and field availability. Urban PEI is distance-weighted and does not count unique people; zero does not establish that nobody is present. Model cards.
Source and revision timeline
Source: firms. Occurrence: 2026-09-04T13:08:00.000Z.
First archived: 2026-03-18T23:58:00.110Z. Material modification: 2026-10-18T17:03:43.632Z.
Retained revisions are prospective; earlier versions may be unavailable. No revision entry does not prove that a record never changed.
Score breakdown
Technical details
| Brightness | 367 |
| Frp | 2331.02 |
| PixelCount | 378 |
| Confidence | high |
Safety information
Heat shows up at this spot regularly, which usually means an industrial plant or routine burning rather than a wildfire. Nothing on this page is an alert. In a real emergency, follow local authorities.
Review the area, threshold and delivery channel in your account.
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.
No news is listed: GDELT was not available when this page was rendered.
GDELT Project · gdeltproject.org