Station Fire Update...

Mostly it's good news: the western side of the fire, and much of the southern side, are largely under control. The fire is now mostly burning in deep, remote forests (some unburned for over 100 years) on the eastern edge. Click to enlarge the MODIS thermal imagery at right. No structures are threatened. The Mount Wilson observatory and communications towers were saved by the firefighters.

But two firefighters have died, and (unfortunately, unsurprisingly) investigators have pegged the cause of the fire as arson. The Los Angeles Sheriff's department is pursuing the case as a homicide, and Governor Schwarzenegger has put up a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the culprit or culprits.