Fires in Peru and Brazil

Hundreds of fires burn in the Amazon rainforest in Peru (left) and Brazil (right). The fires are seen as red squares in this Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) image taken by the Aqua satellite on the afternoon of September 1, 2003. Most of the fires started on September 1, as they don't show up on the morning overpass of the region. Rainforest fires are frequent in the burning season from July to August when farmers and loggers clear the land, though it's not clear what started these fires.

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Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC

Published September 12, 2003
Data acquired September 1 - 1, 2003

Source:

Aqua > MODIS

Topic:

Human Dimensions > Natural Hazards > Fires