Cabeceiras de Basto fire, 6 October 2017
Cabeceiras de Basto, Bucos
Out · last detection 6 Oct 2017, 14:07 UTC
The fire started on 6 October 2017 in Cabeceiras de Basto, Portugal, and satellites saw it burning for 1 day. Copernicus mapped a burnt perimeter of 119 hectares from satellite imagery, spread across 2 freguesias.
It is the 18th largest in Cabeceiras de Basto since 2016 (of 22 with a page). Number 193 in Portugal in 2017, of 211.
The power measured by the satellite is low (18.2 MW in the strongest hotspot), more typical of grass or stubble burning, or a slow surface fire, than of a large crown fire.
matches the official recordwith caveatssatellite onlymodel
When copying, the sentence is
Tick the figures you want: they make up the lede and the CSV.
Burned area
with caveats
119ha
Perimeter published by EFFIS (Copernicus).
This page119ICNF160
Source
EFFIS (Copernicus)
Date
perimeter revised on 26 January 2022
+− cross-check
ICNF: 160 ha (matched records: 2). Difference between the page and the official record: −25.9%. Matched on 1 November 2026. The two figures differ a lot, so these may not be exactly the same fire: take them as nearby records.
Duration by satellite
satellite only
1day
6 Oct 2017 to 6 Oct 2017: first and last day with fire on the page.
Source
EFFIS (Copernicus) · NASA FIRMS · VIIRS
Date
last detection: 6 Oct 2017, 14:07 UTC
+− cross-check
Satellites pass a few times a day and cloud or smoke can hide the fire: a lack of detections is not an official extinction. Each country’s emergency service declares a fire contained or out.
Start
satellite only
6 Oct 2017
First day with fire seen by the satellites or the perimeter.
Source
EFFIS (Copernicus) · NASA FIRMS · VIIRS
Date
6 Oct 2017
+− cross-check
The two figures differ a lot, so these may not be exactly the same fire: take them as nearby records.
Hotspots
satellite only
6
VIIRS detections at 375 m. Most intense hotspot: 18 MW.
Source
NASA FIRMS · VIIRS (Suomi NPP)
Date
6 Oct 2017 – 6 Oct 2017
+− cross-check
There is no official record to compare with. Each hotspot is a pixel detected in one satellite pass, not a separate fire.
The worst day
satellite only
56MW
Total radiative power on 6 October 2017; hotspots that day: 6.
Source
NASA FIRMS · VIIRS (FRP)
Date
6 Oct 2017
+− cross-check
Fire radiative power (FRP) measures the energy the fire gives off when the satellite passes. Added up by day, it compares intensity, not area.
Danger at the start
model
24.6FWI · high
Fire Weather Index (Canadian system) computed by WorldFires for the day the fire started. Consecutive days without rain before: 14.
This is an index computed from weather model data, not a measurement of the fire nor an official warning. Danger warnings are issued by each country’s authority. Emergency number and official warnings ›
Weather during the fire
model
26.1°C · 31% RH
High of 26.1 °C and minimum humidity of 31% on 6 October 2017; gusts of 26 km/h on 6 October 2017.
These are model values for a cell of about 25 km, not from a weather station: they may differ from what was measured on the ground.
ⓘThis page’s change log has been kept since 24 October 2026: every night what it publishes is compared and the difference is logged. Anything earlier is reconstructed from each source’s date and marked as reconstructed.
Show
· reconstructedweather
Weather and FWI computed from the ERA5 reanalysis
· reconstructedofficial
Matched with the official ICNF record
Nearby records with very different figures: 160 ha (records: 2).
A version keeps the area, dates, name and official record; the area as it was logged (changes under 2% are not logged). The map, hotspots and weather always show today’s data.
Citation
A lede of about 60 words figures only, no adjectives
Burnt area inside each freguesia, from crossing the official perimeter with administrative boundaries. The distance runs from the point marking the centre of each area to the nearest fire: staying a kilometre away does not mean it reached the houses.
What burned
Other natural land88 %
Scrub and transitional woodland12 %
Land cover inside the perimeter according to Corine Land Cover, as reported by Copernicus.
Official record
Several official records match this area
According to ICNF, 2 fires started inside this perimeter on these dates, totalling 160 ha (the satellite measured 119 ha). The two figures differ a lot, so these may not be exactly the same fire: take them as nearby records.
ICNF records each fire that started at a different time or place separately; the satellite sees a single burned area, so this page groups them together. The numbers on the map show where each one started.
ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis at the fire location, the standard reference for past weather, and the Canadian Fire Weather Index (the same system Copernicus uses), computed by WorldFires from that data. Days after the fire run until the first rain.
Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0) · Copernicus Climate Change Service (ERA5)
Day
High
Min. humidity
Peak gust
Rain
Danger (FWI)
6 Oct
26.1 °C
31 %
26 km/h
0.0 mm
High 25
7 Oct after
25.3 °C
14 %
37 km/h
0.0 mm
High 35
8 Oct after
26.2 °C
15 %
23 km/h
0.0 mm
High 33
9 Oct after
24.3 °C
23 %
20 km/h
0.0 mm
High 30
10 Oct after
24.3 °C
22 %
18 km/h
0.0 mm
High 31
11 Oct after
22.6 °C
24 %
33 km/h
0.0 mm
High 35
12 Oct after
25.3 °C
24 %
21 km/h
0.0 mm
High 32
13 Oct after
23.1 °C
36 %
22 km/h
0.0 mm
High 28
14 Oct after
25.7 °C
30 %
30 km/h
0.0 mm
High 31
15 Oct after
28.6 °C
22 %
54 km/h
0.4 mm
High 36
16 Oct after
19.5 °C
56 %
39 km/h
1.4 mm
Moderate 21
Its twins: fires that started in the same weather
It started with an FWI of 24.6, a minimum humidity of 31% and 14 days without rain. Fires in the area that started in weather like this since 2016: 45.
FWI at the start24.6
Minimum humidity31 %
Days without rain14
this firechosen twinsrest of the area
Almost identicalSimilar
Outlines of the closest twins
This fire · Cabeceiras de Basto fire, 6 October 2017
119 ha1 dayFWI 24.6Min. humidity 31 %
Barrô fire, September 2026
132 ha2 daysFWI 25.3Min. humidity 32 %49 km away, in 2026
First rain (1 mm or more) after it ended: 4.4 mm on 28 Sept.
It stayed below its twins: 119 ha against a median of 256 ha. It lasted 1 day, against 2 days.
In 14 of 45, not even 1 mm fell in the ten days after the end: they went out without rain. In the rest, the first rainy day brought a median of 4.4 mm.
This is a bank of analogues: it shows what usually happens, not what will happen. With fewer than 15 twins we give no figures. How we calculate it
How it ended
1.4 mmfirst rain
16 Oct10 days after it ended
26km/h · max. gust
It was considered over on 6 Oct, and on 16 Oct 1.4 mm fell. We do not know whether the rain or the firefighters put it out. Twins with rain when they ended: 31 of 45, with a median of 4.4 mm.
Weather on this page: Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0) · Copernicus Climate Change Service (ERA5)
How a twin is chosen
Same area: fires that have already ended, less than 250 km from this one, since 2016.
Same start: we compare the FWI on the first day, the minimum humidity that day and the run of days without rain before it. The slider sets how much they may differ.
Only pages with final weather data (ERA5 reanalysis) calculated in the same way as this fire’s; agricultural and grass burns and pages with data under review are left out.
Fires burning at the same time as this one (a week before or after) are left out: they share the same spell of weather and do not count as a precedent.
They are sorted by similarity, and the outlines of the first five are drawn.
Drag the line to compare the same ground before the fire and after it.
↔
Before · 29 Sept 2017
After · 13 Oct 2017
Sentinel-2 did not pass over on that day. Try another date, or use false colour, which is daily.
If the day is cloudy, change the date: each satellite passes once a day. In false colour the burnt ground looks brown or red.
The smoke
CAMS · Copernicus
On 8 October 2017 the air beside the fire reached 21 µg/m³ of PM2.5. That day averaged 15: 1.0 times the WHO daily guideline (15).
PM2.5 peak21µg/m³
Days over the guideline1day
PM1030µg/m³
WHO 15
4 Oct6 Oct8 Oct
GoodFairModeratePoorVery poorExtremely poor
Particles from the Copernicus CAMS model at the centre of the perimeter; these are not measurements in each town. The pale bar is the worst hour, the solid one the daily average.
Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0) · Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS)
Detections table· 6Every satellite heat detection, one by one, with time, satellite, power and coordinates.›
⬇ Download CSVTimes in UTC. Each detection is a 375 m pixel: a large fire yields hundreds per pass.
Copernicus dates it between 6 October 2017 and 6 October 2017: 1 day between the first and last image with fire.
How much area did it burn?
The perimeter Copernicus measured from satellite imagery is 119 hectares (1.2 km²). Official national figures may differ.
Which freguesias burned?
The fire entered 2 freguesias: Cabeceiras de Basto (118 ha, 4.8 %); Bucos (1 ha, 0.1 %).
Did the fire reach a town?
The fire started in Cabeceiras de Basto and came within 1.9 km of its centre. That is the distance from the perimeter, or the nearest hotspot, to the point marking the centre; it does not mean it entered the houses.
What was the weather like?
During the fire the temperature reached 26.1 °C, humidity dropped to 31 % and gusts hit 26 km/h. The fire danger index (FWI) reached 25, class High.
Where does this data come from?
From the EFFIS (Copernicus) burnt perimeter, NASA FIRMS VIIRS hotspots and the administrative boundaries of Portugal (geoBoundaries). It is not an official report.
How did the fires that started in similar weather in this area end?
Fires less than 250 km away that started since 2016 with a similar FWI, humidity and dry spell: 45. Their median duration was 2 days and their median area 256 ha; 9 % went past 1,000 ha. In 14 of 45, not even 1 mm fell in the ten days after the end: they went out without rain. In the rest, the first rainy day brought a median of 4.4 mm.
Where to verify it
A satellite detection is not an official report. Final figures and the fire’s status are published by each country’s emergency service.
This page is built from satellite data and official records, and it sometimes gets things wrong: the wrong dates, the wrong town, two fires merged into one, or something that was not a wildfire at all. If you know this fire first-hand (you live nearby, saw it, fought it or reported on it), tell us what really happened and we will check it.
⚑Report an errorHow we know this›
Perimeter: EFFIS (Copernicus), mapped on satellite imagery.
Dates from the perimeter: the VIIRS detections inside it did not change them. 6 Suomi-NPP VIIRS detections on those dates.
Compared with ICNF: 160 official ha against 119 ha of perimeter; similar, but with reservations.
Weather: Copernicus ERA5 reanalysis at the fire location, in cells of about 25 km.
The perimeter and land cover come from the Copernicus European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), measured on MODIS and Sentinel-2 imagery and published under CC BY 4.0. Heat detections come from the VIIRS sensors aboard Suomi-NPP and NOAA-20, distributed by NASA FIRMS at 375 m resolution. Freguesia boundaries come from geoBoundaries ADM3 (CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication). The area per freguesia is computed by WorldFires by crossing the perimeter with those boundaries, so it may differ slightly from each country’s official figure.