Above and Beyond: Fire and Agriculture in Borneo and Sumatra
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Fires in Borneo and Sumatra are often started by farmers clearing the land for oil palm or pulpwood plantations.
Produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute’s Office of Public Outreach in collaboration with the NASA Earth Observatory.
- Image of fires in Borneo and Sumatra: NASA/Jeff Schmaltz (LANCE MODIS Rapid Response)/Adam Voiland (NASA Earth Observatory)
Video design and production by STScI
Text by STScI, based on stories from the NASA Earth Observatory: https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/
Music courtesy of APM
Text by STScI, based on stories from the NASA Earth Observatory: https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/
Music courtesy of APM
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An aerial view of land and blue water underneath a sky of white. An island to the bottom left is labeled Sumtra. An island to the top right is labeled Borneo.
Text, Smoke blankets the skies over the islands of Borneo and Sumatra in this satellite image.
Fires there are often started by farmers clearing the land for oil palm or pulpwood plantations.
Red dots appear on the satellite image where smoke rises.
Text, Studies have shown that the smoke particles from such fires can suppress cloud formation, ultimately causing the land to become hotter and drier than it was before.