Brazil and Germany have signed an agreement to develop a night-vision radar satellite to monitor the Amazon region.

The satellite will be launched by 2013, the National Space Research Institute (INPE) has said.

The INPE plans to build the Multiple Application Synthetic Aperture Radar with the help of the German space centre over 18 months. This is the second satellite project undertaken by the two nations.

The 500-kg satellite, which will cost 100 million Euros (US$157 million), is capable of taking photos at night and in difficult weather conditions, such as heavy fog or smoke.
Brazil's Amazon region is often cloudy and forest fires are frequent.