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This picture made the rounds in summer 2019, supposedly showing the areas affected by rainforest fires in Brazil (and other countries) right now. Of course it looks very bad and I'm pretty sure it is. I am, however, curious how it compares to the norm, let's say same season in previous years?

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One of many stories talking about "record numbers of fires": A Record Number of Fires Are Currently Burning Across the Amazon Rainforest

user622505
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    So, here we have Yahoo News asserting that Time Magazine wrote an article quoting Brazil’s Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais as saying that it’s the highest number of fires recorded since 2013, when record-keeping began. – Ben Barden Aug 23 '19 at 20:00
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    Relevant: https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/23/americas/amazon-wildfires-411/index.html – Daniel R Hicks Aug 23 '19 at 21:09
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    And: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/23/world/americas/amazon-fires-brazil.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage – Daniel R Hicks Aug 23 '19 at 21:10
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    I liked this article: "Don't Panic: Amazon Burning Is Mostly Farms, Not Forests" https://reason.com/2019/08/23/dont-panic-amazon-burning-is-mostly-farms-not-forests/ – Dimitri Vulis Aug 24 '19 at 22:42
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    "With the fire season in the Amazon approaching its midpoint, scientists using NASA satellites to track fire activity have confirmed an increase in the number and intensity of fires in the Brazilian Amazon in 2019, making it the most active fire year in that region since 2010." https://www.earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/145498/uptick-in-amazon-fire-activity-in-2019 – liftarn Aug 26 '19 at 07:02
  • For what it is worth, French TV news on TF1 reported yesterday that lots of these fires are being led intentionally by farmers wanting to extend their farm land. And that e.g. in Brazil the punishment for this is ridiculously low (like paying some 200 dollars) - in the event that you get even caught and convicted. But that would probably make for another question. – Scrontch Aug 27 '19 at 11:45

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I stumbled upon this article today. According to the article, the fires this year are 80% up as compared to the previous year, but only 7% above the 10-year average. The article ascribes the claim to Daniel Nepstad who holds a PhD in Forest Ecology and is the Executive Director of Earth Innovation Institute.

user622505
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    10-year average seems like a poor comparator given that the last ten years have been abnormally hot on the global scale. How does that ten years compare to the decades before? – Jack Aidley Aug 27 '19 at 09:29
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    Unfortunately, this is the best I've got so far. I'm not accepting my answer hoping that someone else will arrive with a better source. – user622505 Aug 27 '19 at 09:52
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    @JackAidley I agree, the ten year average could be misleading if the climate is changing exponentially – PC Luddite Aug 27 '19 at 13:06
  • Probably, this means it's been bad for quite a while, and now the problem finally gets acknowledged internationally which is a good thing. – Wouter Aug 29 '19 at 18:44