The PRODES project monitors deforestation by clear-cutting in the Brazilian Legal Amazon using satellite imagery and produces, since 1988, the annual deforestation rates in the region, which are used by the Brazilian government to establish public policies. Annual rates are estimated from the deforestation increments identified in each satellite image that covers the Legal Amazon. The first presentation of the data is made for December of each year, in the form of an estimate. Consolidated data is presented in the first half of the following year. Recent results, based on analyses conducted with independent experts, indicate a level of accuracy close to 95%.