Before & after satellite photos of Hurricane Irma's destruction
Images taken before and after Hurricane Irma from space highlight the powerful storm's profound devastation to islands, towns and cities in its path.
This is Providenciales, a gateway island of Turks and Caicos.
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Anse Marcel beach in Saint Martin
Anse Marcel, one of the most popular beaches on the French side of Saint Martin island, was ravaged by Irma. Left side was taken on Sept. 8 and the right side was taken on Sept. 11, 2017.
The powerful storm ravaged much of the Caribbean, leaving dozens dead and infrastructure in shambles.
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Philipsburg in Sint Maarten
Philipsburg, the capital of Sint Maarten, on the Dutch side of the Caribbean island, seen before and after Irma ripped it apart.
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Tortola in British Virgin Islands
Tortola, the largest of the British Virgin Islands in the Caribbean, took a major hit during Irma.
Most of its vegetation appeared to be wiped away by the storm in the photo on the right, dated Sept. 11, 2017.
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Barbuda damage
Satellite photos show Codrington on the island of Barbuda before and after Irma's widespread destruction.
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Barbuda and Antigua
Satellite imagery shows contrasting tales for Barbuda and Antigua.
The small island of Barbuda was directly hit by Irma on Sept. 6, 2017. The "before" image at left shows it green with vegetation; in the "after" image at right, the land is battered and brown. Antigua missed the storm's center and sustained less damage.
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Virgin Islands
Satellite images taken by NASA show the Virgin Islands on Aug. 25 (top) and Sept. 10 (bottom).
The browning seen in the photos was possibly caused Irma's strong winds blowing away vegetation, giving satellites a clear view of the ground or salt desiccating leaves while they are still on the trees, according to NASA.
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Virgin Gorda
Satellite images of Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands before the arrival of Hurricane Irma and after it swept through the area.
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