how long has the amazon rainforest been around for?
4675
The rainforest has been in existence for at least 55 million years, and most of the region remained free of savanna-type biomes at least until the current ice age when the climate was drier and savanna more widespread.
968014
The eyes of the world have fixed upon the fires in the Amazon rainforest and across South America in mid-2019. ... MODIS has captured more active fires in 2019 than any year since 2010. The fires are not contained to the Amazon, however: large fires are raging across the continent.
1097845
The Amazon rainforest alone contains around 10 percent of the world's known species. Just about every type of animal lives in rainforests. In fact, though rainforests cover less than 2 percent of Earth's total surface area, they are home to 50 percent of Earth's plants and animals, according to The Nature Conservancy.
203117
Amazon Rainforest, large tropical rainforest occupying the drainage basin of the Amazon River and its tributaries in northern South America and covering an area of 2,300,000 square miles (6,000,000 square km).
1408496
Man Who Swam the Amazon: 3,274 Miles On The World's Deadliest River Paperback – Oct. 1 2007. On Sunday, April 8, 200 7, 52-year old Martin Strel completed the first-ever swim of the 3,274-mile-long Amazon River.
148567
The Amazon hasn't stopped burning. There were 19,925 fire outbreaks last month, and 'more fires' are in the future. Advocacy organization Rainforest Alliance blames decreased enforcement of forest law, illegal deforestation and invasion of indigenous territories for rise in fire outbreaks.
25244
Amazon fires may be worse in 2020 as deforestation and land grabbing spikes. Nearly 800 square kilometers of forest were cut down during the first three months of this year — 51% more than during the same period in 2019.
924260
The Amazon is sucking in carbon and greenhouse gases while slowing the rising temperatures. But it's now burning at a record rate -- with images from space showing the smoke covering much of Brazil. It's not the only major forest under assault. ... The biggest reason is expansion of agriculture into forested areas.
267458
Forest fires do happen in the Amazon during the dry season between July and October. They can be caused by naturally occurring events, like lightning strikes, but this year most are thought to have been started by farmers and loggers clearing land for crops or grazing.
1237492
Nearly 1,000 blazes have been recorded in the rainforest so far in November, the INPE data show. It comes as fires continue to rage in the Pantanal, one of the most biodiverse areas in the world and a major tourist destination. INPE data recorded 2,430 fires last month, the highest for any October since 2002.
266102
2019 Amazon rainforest wildfires. ... As of August 29, 2019, INPE reported more than 80,000 fires across all of Brazil, a 77% year-to-year increase for the same tracking period, with more than 40,000 in the Brazil's Legal Amazon (Amazônia Legal or BLA), which contains 60% of the Amazon.
867336
Though the Amazon rainforest has been fire resistant for much of its history because of its natural moisture and humidity, drought and human activities are causing wildfires, according to NASA.
1243499
Cattle ranching is the leading cause of deforestation in the Amazon rainforest. In Brazil, this has been the case since at least the 1970s: government figures attributed 38 percent of deforestation from 1966-1975 to large-scale cattle ranching. Today the figure in Brazil is closer to 70 percent.
1225987
The Amazon is the largest rainforest in the world, and may be home to a quarter of the Earth's land-bound species. If it keeps burning, it's likely to turn into a completely different ecosystem, with fewer trees and different species of plants and animals.
935480
President Bolsonaro signed a decree banning using fire to clear land for 60 days in response to Amazon rainforest situation. ... In the first 48 hours after the ban satellite data from the National Space Research Institute showed 3,859 new outbreaks of fire, 2,000 of which were concentrated in the Amazon region.
32942
The 2019 Amazon rainforest wildfires season saw a year-to-year surge in fires occurring in the Amazon rainforest and Amazon biome within Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Peru during that year's Amazonian tropical dry season.
582311
Cattle ranching is the leading cause of deforestation in the Amazon rainforest. In Brazil, this has been the case since at least the 1970s: government figures attributed 38 percent of deforestation from 1966-1975 to large-scale cattle ranching.