BRAZIL - )5 September 2020 - NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired a natural-color image (above) of smoke over parts of Bolivia and Brazil, largely due to th
BRAZIL - 05 September 2020 - NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired a natural-color image (above) of smoke over parts of Bolivia and Brazil, largely due to the policy of populist Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to remove most environmental protection from the Amazon Basin, which is now emitting more CO2 than it absorbs, scientists say. Thick smoke emanated from Bolivia’s El Beni and Santa Cruz districts, where forests typically receive less rain than other parts of the Amazon basin. The smoke streamed north and mixed with plumes from fires burning in rainforests in several Brazilian states, including Acre, Amazonas, Rondônia, Pará, and Mato Grosso. Substantial fire activity in 2022 has occurred along key highways, notably BR-163 and the Trans-Amazonian highway in Pará and Amazonas (upper right of image). The thickest smoke plumes amid the heavily forested (green) areas typically rise from deforestation fires. These are usually lit to dispose of piles of leftover wood, sometimes several months after forests have been bulldozed. Forest clearing for ranching and farming is common in both countries. Smaller smoke plumes in cleared, agricultural areas (brown) are typically grassland fires lit by ranchers and farmers to manage cattle pastures or croplands. Human-caused deforestation and pasture fires sometimes escape control and spread unchecked. In wet parts of the Amazon, generally in the western and northern parts of the basin, this can lead to understory fires that smolder and spread along the forest floor. In drier areas, including the Chiquitano forests, Beni Savanna, and Chaco forests in Bolivia, fires tend to spread more quickly, burn hotter, produce more smoke, and can consume the forest canopy - Photo: Geopix/NASA
Size: 7713px × 6234px
Location: Amazon Basin, Brazil
Photo credit: © Geopix / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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