Wildfire near Barèges (Jul 17)
True color
Fire (SWIR)
Infrared / SWIR (right): sees through smoke.
🟢 green = vegetation
🟤 red/brown = burned
🟠 orange = active fire
Imagery: Sentinel-2 (Copernicus). Drag to compare smoke vs. infrared.
Heat detections: NASA FIRMS (last 48h).
Spanning 180 hectares (445 acres) near Barèges, France, an active wildfire continues to challenge containment efforts since its ignition on July 17, 2026. Satellite monitoring has detected seven distinct heat clusters in the area over the last 48 hours, indicating a localized but persistent spread across the rugged terrain.
Thermal sensors are currently recording a moderate heat intensity from the fire front, suggesting steady combustion rather than extreme flare-ups. Fire crews remain on the scene to monitor the progression of the blaze as it moves through the region.
In context
This wildfire burned in France for 25 days. In total it burned about 180 ha (445 acres) — around 1.8 km².
In the Northern Hemisphere, wildfire activity usually peaks during the warm, dry months — roughly May through October.
The bigger picture in France
Across France, roughly 96,581 hectares have burned so far in 2026 — 555% above the two-decade average. Data from Copernicus EFFIS.
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