Logo

Grim satellite images taken by NASA show the out-of-control Los Angeles wildfires from space.

One image, taken by the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-2 satellite after the Palisades Fire erupted Tuesday morning, shows a thick band of gray smoke floating over Los Angeles County that billowed out to the coast, according to NASA.


  The images showed thick gray smoke drifting from the Los Angeles area over the coastline. European Space Agency via NASA The images showed thick gray smoke drifting from the Los Angeles area over the coastline. European Space Agency via NASA

  Satellite images show the devastating toll the LA fires have taken on the city as captured from space. Don Pettit/X Satellite images show the devastating toll the LA fires have taken on the city as captured from space. Don Pettit/X

Smoke from the Palisades Fire continued to stream toward the Pacific Ocean, with NASA’s Aqua satellite capturing photos that afternoon of plumes of smoke moving out well past the coastline as the fire scorched over 11,000 acres in the first day, according to CalFire.

As the fires raged on, NASA astronaut Don Pettit from the International Space Station captured more astonishing images of the fires.


  The fires death toll reached at least 16 over the weekend. Don Pettit/X The fires death toll reached at least 16 over the weekend. Don Pettit/X

The photos, taken on Friday, show the hills of Los Angeles County lit up from outer space.

Since Tuesday, multiple wildfires in Southern California have burned through at least 39,000 acres — an area nearly the size of Brooklyn — and firefighters have barely made a dent.

While the Sunset Fire had been contained, and the Kenneth and Hurst fires were over 50% under control, the Palisades and Eaton fires were still raging in Los Angeles on Sunday.

At least 16 people have been killed in the blazes, while another 200,000 have been displaced.


  Satellite images taken by the European Space Agency captured the Los Angeles wildfires from space. NASA Satellite images taken by the European Space Agency captured the Los Angeles wildfires from space. NASA


  The images showed thick gray smoke drifting from the Los Angeles area over the coastline. European Space Agency via NASA The images showed thick gray smoke drifting from the Los Angeles area over the coastline. European Space Agency via NASA

The death toll includes 11 dead in the Eaton Fire and five who perished in the Palisades Fire, according to the county medical examiner’s office.

The deaths are all being investigated as fire-related.

Tens of thousands of Los Angeles residents remain under evacuation orders as the fires have burned through over 12,000 structures.

Comments
anonymous profile image
Powered by RoundtableBuilt on infrastructure designed for real-time media. Learn more at RTB.io.© Roundtable 2026. By using this site you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy