<p><a href="http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/natural-disasters/wildfires/">Wildfires</a> scorch Australia in this image taken from the International Space Station and released January 8. To make matters worse, on January 7, the country experienced their hottest day on record, with average temperatures hitting 104.59 degrees Fahrenheit (40.33 degrees Celsius).</p><p>Forecasts call for even higher temperatures next week—so high in fact that <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/damian-carrington-blog/2013/jan/08/australia-bush-fires-heatwave-temperature-scale">Australia's Bureau of Meteorology had to add a new color to their temperature scale</a>. (See <a href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/01/pictures/130108-australia-wildfires-world-science-environment-tasmania/">more pictures of Australia's wildfires.</a>)</p>
Australia Burning
Wildfires scorch Australia in this image taken from the International Space Station and released January 8. To make matters worse, on January 7, the country experienced their hottest day on record, with average temperatures hitting 104.59 degrees Fahrenheit (40.33 degrees Celsius).
Forecasts call for even higher temperatures next week—so high in fact that Australia's Bureau of Meteorology had to add a new color to their temperature scale. (See more pictures of Australia's wildfires.)
Space Pictures This Week: Australia Burns, Pulsars Wobble
The sun rages, Australia burns, and pulsars wobble in our roundup of the week's best space pictures.
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