Mosquito Fire

199926,199 acresAlaska

The Mosquito Fire burned 26,199 acres, about 41 square miles, across Southeast Fairbanks Census Area. It began on May 15, 1999.

Watch how it happened

Mosquito Fire · 1999

How it happened

See how severely each place burned, revealed outward from where it started.

About this replay
IgnitionMay 15, 1999Historical replay — order not recorded
Final area26,199 ac
Revealed—
Counties1

How severely it burned

Burn severity inside the final perimeter, classified from Landsat images taken before and after the fire.

Map of burn severity across the Mosquito Fire
Burn severity by class
SeverityShareAcres
Highmost vegetation consumed, soils altered30%7,980
Moderatemixed: many trees killed, some survive18%4,601
Lowsurface fire, most trees survive14%3,714
Unburned to lowislands inside the perimeter, little change13%3,310
Increased greennessvegetation greener after the fire than before1.2%303
Not mappedcloud, shadow or water in the satellite images24%6,291

30% of the area inside the perimeter burned at high severity, about 7,980 acres; 48% burned at moderate or high severity.

Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (U.S. Geological Survey and USDA Forest Service). Classes come from the change in a Landsat burn index (dNBR) between images before and after the fire; acres are each class’s share of the fire’s mapped area.

Where it burned

Acres inside each county, measured from the satellite-mapped perimeter.

Acres burned by county
Southeast Fairbanks Census AreaAK26,220

Other large fires in Alaska in 1999

Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (USGS and U.S. Forest Service). Type recorded: Wildfire.