Fires in Southeast Asia

Biomass burning in Southeast Asia is used for land clearing (deforestation) and to prepare land for agricultural purposes like grazing and farming. Each year in the late winter and early spring, the burning season reaches its peak, with hundreds of fires scattered across Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, and surrounding countries. This image of the region shows scores of fires (red dots) detected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Aqua satellite on March 2, 2003. The burning significantly influences air quality, sometimes thousands of kilometers away.

---

Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC

Published March 3, 2003
Data acquired March 2 - 2, 2003

Source:

Aqua > MODIS

Topics:

Human Dimensions > Environmental Impacts > Biomass Burning

Human Dimensions > Environmental Impacts > Deforestation

Human Dimensions > Natural Hazards > Fires

Collection:

MODIS Rapid Response