16 June 2008

The power of a forest fire



This past week there were wildfires in Northern California. The top image shows a woman returning to view what little remains of her home. The lower image shows melted chrome* that flowed away from a four-wheel-drive vehicle!! (Click to supersize images)

*Correction and update: as noted by WD1 in the comment section, this is likely not chrome, which has a melting point of 3465 Fahrenheit, but rather aluminum, which melts at "only" 1220 Fahrenheit.

2 comments:

  1. As I suspected and the comments from the original link pointed out... that is not chrome on the ground. It is aluminum, probably from the engine block and/or heads of the ATV.

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  2. Gee. Drastic way to turn the swimming pool into a hot tub.

    At those temperatures, would the soil evenually be rendered sterile I wonder? How long would it take for plant regeneration?

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