TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has recorded 4,900 hotspots in several Indonesian regions as of Tuesday, July 28, 2026. These hotspots are concentrated in West Kalimantan, East Kalimantan, Riau, South Papua, and Aceh.
The Head of BMKG, Teuku Faisal Fathani, has cautioned all local authorities to stay cautious of the early signs of wildfires, as the peak of the dry season approaches, in August and September. "BMKG continues to monitor the smoke conditions to support anticipatory measures," said Faisal during a virtual press conference on Thursday, July 30, 2026.
By mid-July 2026, BMKG data has noted that 509 season zones (ZOM), or approximately 54.5% of Indonesia's land area, have entered the dry season. Meanwhile, 77 ZOM (11.8%) are still experiencing the rainy season, while 113 ZOM (33.7%) are categorized as having a single season.
As a preventive measure against blazes, weather modification operations (OMC) have been executed in various priority locations. The Deputy of Weather Modification at BMKG, Tri Handoko Seto, stated that cloud seeding within OMC takes into account the potential growth of local rain clouds. This OMC technology works by mimicking the natural atmospheric processes, whether to induce or disperse rain clouds.
"Clouds in nature naturally contain these particles. We add seeding material to mimic the natural process," explained Seto.
The BMKG team optimizes the clouds that form in a particular region to achieve more optimal rainfall. According to Seto, seeding materials such as table salt (NaCl) are sprinkled into active cloud clusters to induce convergence and expedite the formation of water droplets. "Before a fire occurs, we conduct OMC to raise the groundwater level and moisten peatlands," he added.
During the press conference, OMC operations had just been completed in Aceh. Similar activities also took place in Palembang for a week, possibly concluding on Thursday, July 30. The OMC process is ongoing in Pekanbaru today, as well as in Palangkaraya.
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