NASA images show Manitoba farmland turning brown amid Saskatchewan River Delta wetlands

NASA Earth Observatory published satellite images on October 1 showing farmland in Manitoba’s Carrot River Valley, west of The Pas, changing from green in July to largely brown in September 2026. The two views place the seasonal change inside the wetlands of the Saskatchewan River Delta, where a cultivated area stands out against surrounding marshes and waterways.

The images were captured on July 2 by Landsat 9 and September 21 by Landsat 8. Both used the satellites’ Operational Land Imager. NASA’s comparison shows green crops across many fields in the earlier view and a markedly browner pattern in the later one. The images document how the fields looked on those dates; they do not provide a field-by-field harvest tally.

Where the Carrot River Valley fields sit

NASA identifies the farming area as the Carrot River Valley, also called the Pasquia Area Settlement. It lies in the Rural Municipality of Kelsey between the Carrot and Pasquia rivers, which flow into the Saskatchewan River. The actively farmed land covers more than 40,000 hectares, or about 100,000 acres, making it Manitoba’s northernmost agricultural area.

Straight-edged fields give the valley its distinctive shape in the satellite views. Around them, the wider delta contains winding channels, lakes and marshes. NASA says much of that landscape is too wet for extensive farming; the Saskeram Wildlife Management Area’s marshes lie north of the cultivated land. The wetland setting explains why the fields appear as an agricultural ‘island’ in the imagery.

What the September harvest report shows

The provincial report put harvest completion across Manitoba at 51% on September 28. It said warm temperatures and minimal precipitation across most of the Northwest had improved drying and harvest progress. Most of that region received less than three millimeters of rain during the preceding week, according to the report. The figures provide context for the September image without assigning a cause to each brown field.

NASA reported 1.6 millimeters of rain at The Pas in the week before its September image, while other parts of the Northwest received as much as 43.9 millimeters. Its account also says planting in the valley began later than in some areas farther south in the reporting region because of wet conditions. The agency notes that fertile soils and long summer days can help crops grow quickly at this latitude.

The crop report describes uneven results across the Northwest. It puts spring wheat yields in a range from below average to above average, and canola yields from below average to average. Manitoba Agriculture also reported some sprouted crops and water still standing in low parts of fields. Those regional observations cannot establish the yield or condition of any particular field in NASA’s images.

What the images cannot identify yet

NASA says Landsat data contribute to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s annual crop inventory. The 2026 inventory had not been released when NASA prepared its feature. The available 2025 map showed mostly canola and spring wheat in the Carrot River Valley, with small patches of Canary seed, but that older map does not identify what was planted in each field in 2026.

Nor does the change from green to brown, by itself, establish the valley’s harvest percentage or crop yields. NASA describes the September view as the pattern flipping from its July appearance. The provincial report supplies a separate account of harvest across a much larger area. Read together, the sources show a seasonal visual change and regional harvest progress, with different limits on what each can tell readers.

Why water management matters in the valley

The valley’s relationship with water extends beyond this growing season. NASA says a major flood-control and drainage project began there in the 1950s. Farming still relies on diking and pumping for protection from agricultural flooding. That history helps explain how extensive fields exist within the wet delta, although NASA’s feature does not quantify the current works or their effects.