The European Space Agency (ESA) is Europe’s gateway to space. Its mission is to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world.
Find out more about space activities in our 23 Member States, and understand how ESA works together with their national agencies, institutions and organisations.
Exploring our Solar System and unlocking the secrets of the Universe
Go to topicProtecting life and infrastructure on Earth and in orbit
Go to topicUsing space to benefit citizens and meet future challenges on Earth
Go to topicMaking space accessible and developing the technologies for the future
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Deforestation near the northwestern Brazilian city of Rio Branco has made its mark on the rainforest over the last 30 years. In this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image from 05 August 2016, we can see where vegetation has been cleared away for logging, farming and other activities.
Rainforests worldwide are being destroyed at an alarming rate. This is of great concern because they play an important role in global climate, and are home to a wide variety of plants, animals and insects. More than a third of all species in the world live in the Amazon Rainforest.
Unlike other forests, rainforests do not grow back when they are destroyed and, owing to their composition, their soils are not suitable for long-term agricultural use.
With their unique view from space, Earth observation satellites have been instrumental in highlighting the vulnerability of the rainforests by documenting the scale of deforestation, particularly in remote areas.
In this false-colour image, vegetation appears red to help us better distinguish between vegetated and non-vegetated areas.