Astronauts Alarmed by Huge Fires on Surface of Earth

"We've been very saddened to see fires over huge sections of the Earth, not just the United States."

Earth in Flames

It's no secret that our planet is literally and figuratively on fire right now.

In fact, some wildfires are so large that they can now easily spotted from space — an unfortunate perspective of what may be our impending doom.

During a recent call with Insider, NASA astronaut Megan McArthur described the grim experience of being stationed on board the International Space Station while the Earth is in turmoil below.

"We've been very saddened to see fires over huge sections of the Earth, not just the United States," McArthur told the outlet.

She also took the opportunity to call for action.

"Over many years, scientists around the world have been sounding this alarm bell," she told Insider. "This is a warning for the entire global community. It's going to take the entire global community to face this and to work through these challenges."

Wildfire Season

Satellite images show huge regions across the entire planet engulfed in clouds of smoke of astronomical proportions, from Siberia, Greece, and Spain all the way to the Pacific Northwest.

Turkey has been hit particularly badly this year, as evidenced in videos of vacationers clearing beaches as the fires are raging in the background.

Some, like the Bootleg Fire in Southern Oregon, are so huge that they're creating their own freak weather patterns. The US is even struggling to recruit enough firefighters.

Last week, the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a shocking report declaring "code red for humanity."

Seeing that demise from several hundred miles floating above the Earth's surface must be shocking, to say the least.

READ MORE: Astronauts say they're saddened to watch the climate crisis from the space station: 'We can see all of those effects from up here' [Insider]

More on wildfire: There Are So Many Wildfires That the US Can’t Find Enough Firefighters