We evaluated the distribution, percentage, and homogeneous regions of fire foci in Brazil over 1998-2011. Included are numbers of fire foci by regions and states as well as their seasonal and monthly variations, with emphasis on human activities and their relationships with producing systems and rainfall inhibitors. We used data from forest fire meteorological satellites, obtained from the Centro de Previsão do Tempo e Estudos Climáticos. Evaluation of regional fire foci distributions gave 37.15 % for the central west and just 1.75 % in the south. Brazilian regions with the highest densities of forest fires per unit area were the northeast, central west, and north. Lowest densities were in the north, southeast, and south. The states of Mato Grosso, Pará, Maranhão, Bahia, Rondônia, and Tocantins had the greatest numbers of fire foci during our study period. The Federal District and the states of Sergipe, Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Norte, and Alagoas had the smallest numbers. Spring (62.2 %) and winter (28.7 %) had higher frequencies than summer (6.7 %) and autumn (2.7 %). A clustering technique showed three homogeneous regions of fire foci in Brazil. The regional grouping technique showed the influence of synoptic systems and large-scale patterns of fires in the country. In addition to the use of NOAA-12 satellite images for monitoring Brazilian fire foci, orbital platforms such as MMODIS-01D and T-AQUA can be used. Finally, anthropogenic activities (deforestation, agriculture, livestock, mining, and industrial) and the variability of meteorological systems affected the fire increase during the study period.

This study shows the relationship between the fire foci and the MCD12Q1 product (MODIS) for the land use and occupation in the state of Rio de Janeiro (SRJ) and evaluates the growth and decay of trends fire foci through nonparametric tests, applied to the number of fire foci in the 2000–2012 period. The study period was divided into (1) 2001 to 2013 for assessment of the product MCD12Q1 back for the land use and occupation and application of nonparametric tests and (2) 2000 to 2012 for the descriptive statistics (total and percentage‐%) of fire foci geared for regional assessment. To evaluate growth trends and decay of fire foci, the nonparametric tests (Mann–Kendall and Pettitt) were utilized. Based on data obtained by Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE), the land use and occupation in the SRJ has been modified from the last two census years (1995 and 2006). The Mann–Kendall test was significant for the year 2001, with trends of 0 · 19 and 0 · 08 (Mann–Kendall). Fire foci for the years 2001 and 2013 grew with an increase of 0 · 05 and 0 · 01 per year, respectively. The Pettitt statistic test applied for the year 2001 showed that almost 70% of the studied municipalities were above the critical threshold, which has not occurred for the year 2013. The North Fluminense Region with 596 fire foci (30 · 35%) was the one with the largest number of fire foci, and the municipality of Campos dos Goytacazes was the largest contributor, with 344 fire foci (57 · 72%). The Pasturage class (MCD12Q1 product) had the biggest number of fire foci, with 354 foci (56 · 64%) in 2001 and 564 foci (42 · 28%) in 2013 and the largest amount in the north of the SRJ. The study indicated that there was a significant increase in average fire foci. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

from Seropédica were related to synoptic systems and El Niño Southern Oscillation episodes (ENSO). Evaluation was divided into average, monthly, seasonal and annual. Synoptic data are from Climanálise from 1996 to 2012. Descriptive statistics and non-parametric tests (Mann-Kendall (MK), Pettitt and Sen Method (Se)) were applied to time series from Climanálise. The identified average characteristics showed high interannual and intraseasonal variability of synoptic systems, followed by the interaction between local and mesoscale systems in the rainfall regime. Seasonally, spring (38.06%) and summer (30.35%) were higher than autumn (20.91%) and winter (10.68%). The highest average accumulated monthly was observed in the joint occurrence of SACZ/ MCZ and FS from November to January period, followed by the influence of ENSO episodes in Seropédica. FS occurrences decreased in 2005, while in 2003 there was an increased SACZ/MCZ. MK test results considering α = 5% showed that there is Significant Increasing Trend (SIT) in SACZ/MCZ (Z > 2.25) and Significant Decreasing Trend (SDT) of FS (Z < 3.68) in Rio de Janeiro. Statistical identified trends and critical periods of synoptic systems.