[NASA] Smoke Shrouds Northern Thailand

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3. Smoke Shrouds Northern Thailand

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The

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(Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) on NASA’s

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satellite captured this hazy view of the city and the surrounding region on April 22, 2026.

NASA Earth Observatory/Lauren Dauphin

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, Thailand’s second-largest city, lies within a network of narrow valleys in the country’s northern highlands. Though the historic city is known for panoramic views of the surrounding mountains, clear skies have

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. In recent decades, smoke has

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the skies during the dry season, particularly in March and April.

A NASA satellite captured this smoky view of the city and the surrounding region on April 22, 2026, when haze partially obscured valleys and ridges typically visible under clearer conditions. Most of the smoke likely comes from small agricultural and forest fires lit to burn off crop debris or maintain forest ecosystems. In 2026, satellite sensors detected small numbers of fires throughout January, but fire detections became more

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in February, March, and April. Fire activity typically peaks in

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and fades by May as seasonal rains increase. 

Research indicates that smoke from

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is one of the

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to poor

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in northern Thailand during the dry season. By

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, about 70 percent of

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(PM_2.5) in Chiang Mai in April comes from biomass burning. Smaller contributors to the region’s hazy skies include

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, power plants and industry, and charcoal burning for cooking and heating. Geography also plays a key role; the surrounding mountains block air flow and encourage

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that trap both local pollution and haze from the broader region in the valleys.

On the same day the satellite image was captured, air quality sensors on the ground recorded “unhealthy” and “very unhealthy” levels of PM_2.5 air pollution throughout Chiang Mai and the region, according to data from the

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. Prolonged exposure to high levels of air pollution can contribute to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and other health problems.

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suggest that the haze is affecting the tourism industry and has contributed to a decrease in the number of international travelers coming to Chiang Mai. After more than a month of persistent haze, the number of tourists arriving in the town of Pai, a popular destination for backpackers northwest of Chiang Mai, was down 90 percent, according to one

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.

Unusually warm and dry conditions have gripped the region in recent weeks, according to meteorologists with the

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(ASMC). On March 27, the group advised that there was a “high risk” of severe transboundary haze in the region and elevated its

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, the highest on the scale. 

In late March, the group noted that dry conditions were forecast to persist over most parts of the Mekong sub-region, with prevailing winds expected to blow mostly from the south or southwest. “Under these conditions,” ASMC noted, “the hotspot and smoke haze situation could escalate further.”

NASA Earth Observatory image by Lauren Dauphin, using MODIS data from NASA 

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 and 

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. Story by Adam Voiland.

Downloads

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April 22, 2026

JPEG (2.10 MB)

References & Resources

• ASMC (2026)
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  . Accessed April 22, 2026.
• Bangkok Post (2026, April 17)
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  . Accessed April 22, 2026.
• NASA Earthdata (2026, April 10)
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  . Accessed April 22, 2026.
• NASA Earth Observatory (2024, April 8)
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  . Accessed April 22, 2026.
• NASA Earth Observatory (2024, April 1)
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  . Accessed April 22, 2026.
• The Nation (2026, April 18)
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  . Accessed April 22, 2026.   
• Pani, S., et al. (2020)
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  . Environmental Pollution, 259, 113871.
• Pirard, C. & Charoenpanwutikul, A. (2023)
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  . Earth ArXiv preprint.
• Orion (2025, February 12)
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  . Accessed April 22, 2026.

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