Train Derailment and Fire in Casselton, ND - December 31, 2013
A train derailment near Casselton, ND on December 31, 2013 led to a large fire and explosions. Images captured by VIIRS and GOES-E show the extent of the incident and resulting smoke plumes, with thermal imagery revealing warm spots amidst the snow-covered area. The DNB imagery highlights a bright spot at the location of the derailment, possibly indicating the presence of smoke plumes backlit by city lights. The event involved both a grain train and a crude oil train, with significant damage and environmental impact.
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Presentation Transcript
VIIRS McIDAS-V Casselton, ND Train Derailment December 31, 2013 William Straka III 1 1
Background A train derailment occurred about one mile west of Casselton, North Dakota at 20:10 UTC (2:10 PM local time) on 30 December 2013 10 cars of a westbound train transporting grain initially derailed, which then caused an eastbound train transporting crude oil to also derail. A large fire and multiple explosions erupted from the engine and 18 cars of the derailed eastbound train, which were carrying crude oil from the Bakken oil shale field region in northwestern North Dakota. Explosion and resulting smoke was caught by GOES-E imagery (thermal and visible) Suomi NPP VIIRS flew over at 09:06 UTC (3:06 AM local) on 31 December
VIIRS DNB, Before 0803Z, December 29 2013 Casselton
VIIRS DNB, After 0906Z, December 29 2013 Casselton Note added light 1 pixel (~1km) W of Casselton Possible smoke/cirrus
VIIRS M13 (3.9 m), After 0906Z, December 29 2013 Casselton Note warm pixel in same location
VIIRS M15 (11 m), After 0906Z, December 29 2013 Casselton cirrus
Summary Day/Night Band (DNB) imagery seems to indicate a bright spot, which is in the same location as the train derailment. Thermal (3.9 m) imagery also shows a relatively warm spot in the same location (note, the surrounding region is snow covered, so the remaining fires will stand out). While there is some cirrus in the region, it is possible that some of the smoke plume may be visible in the DNB imagery (backlit by the surrounding city lights)
