During the dry season from April to December, the lands of the
Australian Northern Territory are everywhere covered with fire. On the
first picture, received by the NASA satellite “Aqua” on June 5, there
are fires in the forest areas of the peninsula Arnhem Land. The second
image received on June 6 shows an grassy fire to the southeast of Lake
Argyll in the Tanami Desert.
The type of burning vegetation varies depending on the latitude. In
the coastal areas, where the greatest amount of precipitation falls,
eucalyptus forests predominate. Pasture meadows are common in the more
dry areas located farther into the country.
Most of the fires in the Northern Territory are caused by people.
Indigenous Australian communities often use fire in agriculture, for
cleaning roads and for other purposes. Extremely dry weather in May made
the vegetation easily flammable. Although the number of fires on the
peninsula is quite large compared to other areas of Australia, it is
still slightly below the average for April-July, explained Rick McGray, a
risk analyst in the Australian capital government.
