Wildfire near Pichanal, Argentina (2026)

Wildfire near Pichanal — Sentinel-2 true color

Wildfire near Pichanal — 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 30 km southeast of Pichanal.

An active wildfire burning near Pichanal, Argentina, has sparked significant concern as satellites detect an intense heat signature from the active front. Driven by twelve recent heat detections over the past forty-eight hours, the fire has reached an estimated size of 300 hectares, equivalent to 741 acres, since it first started on November 12, 2026.

This incident unfolds during the region's typical fire season, which spans from December to March. The broader landscape reflects a notably quieter fire year across the country, where 1,087,550 hectares have burned so far in 2026, marking a 73% decrease compared to the two-decade average.

In context

This wildfire has been burning in Argentina for 1 day. So far it has affected roughly 300 ha (741 acres) — about 3.0 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.