Wildfire near Formoso (Aug 18), Brazil (2026)

Wildfire near Formoso (Aug 18) — Sentinel-2 true color

Wildfire near Formoso (Aug 18) — Sentinel-2 SWIR (fuego)

True view Fire view

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True view (left): as the eye sees it.
Fire view (right): infrared (SWIR), sees through smoke and brings out the heat.

🟢 green = vegetation
🟤 brown = already burned
🟠 orange = fire right now

Drag to compare: normal photo on the left, heat brought out on the right.

Green: vegetationBrown: already burnedOrange: fire right nowSentinel-2 · Copernicus

The story so far

About 45 km west of Formoso.

Summary written on Aug 19, while the fire was still active. It has since ended — the figures above are current.

Satellites are picking up an intense heat signature at the active wildfire burning near Formoso, Brazil, which has scorched 580 hectares (1,433 acres) since it started on August 18, 2026. The blaze has triggered 23 thermal detections in the past 48 hours, illustrating the current spread of the front across the landscape during the region's typical fire season, which runs from August to October.

Despite this localized activity, the broader national picture reveals a different trend. Across the country, 3,040,278 hectares have burned so far in 2026, marking a figure that is 90% below the two-decade average.

In context

This wildfire burned in Brazil for 2 days. In total it burned about 580 ha (1,433 acres) — around 5.8 km². That size is an estimate from satellite hotspots, not a measured area.

Close to the tropics, fires tend to follow the dry season and are often linked to land-clearing rather than a single summer peak.