Smoke from Canada wildfires affects air quality across North America
Canada is currently facing an intense fire season, with hundreds of active wildfires across Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Manitoba, prompting the evacuation of thousands of residents. Smoke from these fires has severely degraded air quality both locally and across borders, including the United States.
This false colour image, acquired by one of the Copernicus Sentinel-3 satellites on 3 August 2025, shows the smoke cloud from the wildfires engulfing skies over Canada and the US.
According to the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), June and July 2025 saw severe wildfire activity in Canada, with daily total wildfire intensity and emissions consistently above the 2003-2024 average throughout the summer.
Copernicus data are critical for tracking wildfire activity and smoke transport, supporting emergency response and global air quality monitoring.
