۴ý

Skip to main content

Smoke from Siberian wildfires reaches North Pole for the first time in history

Share
toronto -

Satellite imagery from NASA shows smoke from wildfires in the Siberian region of Russia have reached the North Pole in what the agency is calling “a first in recorded history.”

The images from NASA’s Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) taken on Aug. 6, show smoke blanketing 3,200 kilometres from east to west and 4,000 kilometres from north to south, effectively covering most of Russia.

“This week, wildfire smoke has travelled more than 3,000 km from Yakutia to reach the North Pole, a feat that appears to be a first in recorded history,”

Smoke from the fires could also be seen in Nunavut, western Greenland and Mongolia, NASA added.

The smoke is coming from severe wildfires in the Sakha-Yakutia republic, Russia’s largest territory and area known to be one of the coldest places in the world during the winter months.

As of Sunday, 155 active wildfires were still burning in region, while two villages totalling 3,200 residents had to be evacuated.

On Monday, the United Nations released a scathing report that predicted worse heat waves, droughts and flash flooding unless humansd rastically cut down their emissions.

With files from The Associated Press  

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

The Maritime Sikh Society says the body of a young employee who died at a Walmart in Halifax last weekend was found by her mother.

Montreal police say four teenagers suffered stab wounds after an altercation near John F. Kennedy High School in the city's Villeray—Saint-Michel—Parc-Extension borough on Thursday.

Four people are dead and another is in hospital after a Tesla driving through downtown Toronto at a high rate of speed crashed into a guardrail and struck a concrete pillar on Lake Shore Boulevard.

Voting officials say recounts in two ridings that could determine the outcome of British Columbia's election won't start until Sunday afternoon.

Emergency crews responded to a call for a stabbing at Paul Landry Park on Uplands Drive, between Paul Anka Drive and Bennett Street, at 11:25 a.m. Thursday.

Local Spotlight

A new resident at a Manitoba animal rescue has waddled her way into people's hearts.

Hundreds of people ran to the music of German composer and pianist Beethoven Wednesday night in a unique race in Halifax.

He is a familiar face to residents of a neighbourhood just west of Roncesvalles Avenue.

A meteor lit up our region's sky last night – with a large fireball shooting across the horizon over Lake Erie at around 7:00 p.m.

Residents of Ottawa's Rideauview neighbourhood say an aggressive wild turkey has become a problem.

A man who lost his life while trying to rescue people from floodwaters, and a 13-year-old boy who saved his family from a dog attack, are among the Nova Scotians who received a medal for bravery Tuesday.

A newly minted Winnipegger is hoping a world record attempt will help bring awareness for the need for more pump track facilities in the city.

A Springfield, Ont. man is being hailed a 'hero' after running into his burning home to save his two infant children.

Hortense Anglin was the oldest graduate to make her way across the platform at York University's Fall Convocation ceremony this week. At the age of 87, she graduated with an Honours degree in Religious Studies.