Aftermath of the Butte Fire

I chose to utilize the before (August NDVI) and after (September NDVI) to portray the loss of vegetation in the most simplest way possible. My map is oriented in a way that frames the before and after data of Normalized Difference Vegetation Index because it shows how the fire burned through the vegetation and caused the NDVI to shift. It is easily identified that the shift was from high NDVI to low NDVI from the stark color change. The two maps show the change that the fire caused. There is a large difference between the NDVI as can be seen from the large color change within the fire perimeter. From the two images one can see that there is a huge loss of vegetation. I also added a little comment about what NDVI is and what the different values mean because it might be confusing the people who are no familiar with the index and the way the data was collected.

I also chose to make an extent map that displayed where the fire was in relation to California but also on the smaller extent to show where the fire within Amador- Calaveras county. I assumed that this map would be only viewed by Californians because it is one specific fire within California during this year. This helps the readers of the map locate exactly where the fire was in relation to where they are. It is obvious that the fire burned a very large area within Amador-Calaveras County, over 70 thousand acres burned. It will take many years until the area will be back to its state before the fire. The topography of the area did not help with containing the fire due to the terrain.