image: The Indian state of Punjab has two growing seasons -- one from May to September and another from November to April. In November, Punjab farmers typically sow crops such as wheat and vegetables; but before they do that, farmers often set fire to fields to clear them for planting. That was probably the case on Oct. 29, 2015, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA's Aqua satellite captured this natural-color image.
Red outlines show the approximate locations of active burning. Punjab comprises only about 1.6 percent of India's land surface, but thanks to fertile soils and the adoption of agricultural advances, the state grows about one-fifth of India's wheat. Preparing for planting with fire has the benefit of clearing out some pests that eat crops and turning crop residues from the previous season into fertilizing ash.
Actively burning areas, detected by MODIS's thermal bands, are outlined in red.
Credit: NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz LANCE/EOSDIS MODIS Rapid Response Team, GSFC. Caption by Lynn Jenner with information from NASA's Michon Scott