NASA Visualization Captures Record Year for Wildfires in the
U.S. The total affected area, which is depicted in a new NASA
map, is already the third-largest since records were first kept
in 1960, and will likely break previous records by year’s end.
The most intense fires occurred in the western U.S., where
several major fires during the early summer — sparked by a
combination of drought, light winter snow pack, and the long-
term effects of climate change — forced evacuations in some
areas. In the visualization, which shows all fires that occurred
between Jan. 1 and Oct. 31, areas of yellow and orange indicate
larger and more intense fires, while many of the less intense
fires, shown in red, represent prescribed burns started for
brush clearing or agriculture and ecosystem management. The
visualization was based on data collected by NASA satellites.
Article appearing courtesy Yale Environment 360. |Tags: Climate
Change drought NASA snow pack visualization wildfires||[
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