English: Snow clung to the peaks of the mountains of British Columbia, Canada in mid-May, 2015 as an early spring fire burned in the greening lands of the interior plateau. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) captured this true-color image on May 12.

British Columbia�s interior plateau is surrounded by mountains, with the most prominent ranges being the Rocky Mountains in the east and the Coastal Mountains in the west. According to the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations, the second week of May a blocking high pressure ride developed over northern British Columbia, which has brought warm summer-like temperatures throughout the province. The warm weather has led to rapid snow melt, and the snow basin indices declined through the month, with most regions of the province with snow basin indices of less than 49% of normal. Low rainfall and higher temperatures often work together to increase fire risk.

The large red hotspot marks an actively burning Little Bobtail Lake fire. Heavy grey smoke rises from the fire and pours to the northwest. The fire was first spotted on May 9, but the cause of ignition is unknown. By May 23, the fire had burned 25,000 hectares of vegetation, and was located about 70 km (45 mi) southwest of the city of Prince George. The fire reached 80% containment on that date.