🔥 Worldwide wildfire & smoke map
Satellites spot fires all over the world every day, and the glowing circles show where. Zoom in on any region to see the individual detections and the area they outline. In the U.S., agency-reported fires are outlined in orange, shaded colors show the North America smoke forecast, and dashed zones show Red Flag Warnings and air quality alerts. Tap any fire or alert for the full details.
Most intense fire activity worldwide
Largest U.S. fires right now
Worldwide: NASA VIIRS satellite thermal detections (via Esri Living Atlas), updated through the day. U.S. fires and perimeters: WFIGS from the National Interagency Fire Center. Smoke forecast: NOAA (North America). Alerts: National Weather Service (U.S.).
🚨 Fire & smoke alerts
Every active National Weather Service Red Flag Warning, Fire Weather Watch, air quality alert and smoke advisory in the United States. Tap one to read the entire alert.
📋 Active fires
Where satellites see the most fire activity in the world right now, followed by every reported U.S. wildfire. Tap any one for its details, alerts and warnings at its location, and current weather and air quality there.
🌍 Fire activity worldwide
Each entry is a patch of land about 70 miles (110 km) wide where satellites detected heat from fires in the last 24 hours. Satellites cannot always tell wildfires from planned agricultural or land-clearing burns, so check local officials.
U.S. wildfires reported by incident teams
Sizes and containment are reported by incident teams and can lag behind conditions on the ground. Outside the U.S., fires appear on the map as satellite detections (the glowing circles).
🌫️ Smoke & air quality
How the smoke forecast works
NOAA's smoke model estimates surface smoke concentration for the next 48 hours from the fires it knows about and the weather forecast. It covers North America and is updated twice a day. Drag the slider under the map to watch the smoke move. Elsewhere in the world, switch on the daily NASA satellite image to see smoke plumes.
Smoke can travel thousands of miles. Fires in the Pacific Northwest or Canada can put haze over the Midwest and East Coast within days.
US Air Quality Index
Protecting yourself from smoke
- Stay indoors with windows and doors closed when smoke is heavy
- Run a HEPA air purifier, or an AC set to recirculate with a clean filter
- An N95 or similar respirator helps outdoors; dust masks and bandanas do not
- Children, older adults, pregnant people and anyone with asthma, heart or lung disease are most at risk
- Smoke particles (PM2.5) are tiny enough to reach deep into the lungs
🌡️ Fire weather & warnings
| Alert | What it means |
|---|---|
| Fire Weather Watch | Conditions may support extreme fire behavior in the next 12 to 72 hours. Time to prepare. |
| Red Flag Warning | Critical fire weather is happening or about to: usually strong winds, very low humidity and dry fuels together. Any new fire can spread explosively. Avoid anything that could spark, including outdoor burning, towing chains and parking on dry grass. |
| Air Quality Alert | Issued with state or local air agencies when pollution, most often wildfire smoke, reaches unhealthy levels. |
| Dense Smoke Advisory | Smoke is reducing visibility to a mile or less, which makes driving dangerous. |
| Evacuation orders | Not issued by the weather service. They come from your county sheriff or emergency management, often through local alert systems. Many areas use levels such as Ready, Set, Go or "Level 1, 2, 3". Leave early when told; do not wait to see the fire. |
What makes a fire spread
- Fuel: dry grass, brush, forest litter and homes
- Weather: low humidity, high heat and especially wind, which can push fire miles in an hour
- Terrain: fire runs uphill, and canyons and slopes funnel the wind
Where wildfires are most common
The western U.S. and Canada's boreal forest have the largest fires. Elsewhere: the Mediterranean, southern and eastern Australia, Siberia, the Amazon and Cerrado, southern Africa and Indonesia's peatlands (which create regional haze).
Climate and fire
Hotter, drier conditions dry out fuels faster and have lengthened the fire weather season in many regions, including the western U.S. Most fires are still started by people or lightning, so ignition, fuels and weather all matter.
🧰 Be prepared
Get ready
- Know two ways out of your neighborhood and sign up for your county's emergency alerts
- Keep a go-bag: documents, medication, chargers, water, N95 masks, pet supplies
- Fill gutters and clear a five-foot zone of burnable material around the house; screen vents against embers
- Most homes lost in wildfires are ignited by embers, not the flame front
If you are told to leave
- Go early; roads can become blocked quickly
- Close windows and doors, and leave lights on for visibility
- Follow official routes, not shortcuts, and keep your car windows up with air on recirculate
Official sources
- InciWeb (incident information)
- National Interagency Fire Center
- AirNow (air quality)
- NWS Fire Weather
- Ready.gov: Wildfires
- CIFFC (Canada)