'Dry Seaeson in Australia Leads to Many Fires'

Australia (HDW) June 17, 2004 - Early dry season fires were burning across Arnhem Land in Northern Territory, Australia on June 17, 2004. Fires were also detected on Melville Island, to the northwest of the mainland across Van Diemen Gulf, which is filled with streamers of tan-colored sediment. A particularly smoky line of fires is burning east of the Joseph Bonaparte Gulf, at lower left in the image.
The region’s dry season is generally from May until October, with prescribed fire on rangeland and farmland typically conducted in the early part of the season and naturally ignited blazes dominating the late dry season. The Northern Territory has one of the highest frequencies of early season fires in Australia because land managers there conduct numerous prescribed fires to reduce grass that could act as fuel for more severe wildfires later in the dry season.