Wildfire smoke blankets volcanoes across the Pacific Northwest | Space photo of the day for Aug. 17, 2026
The wildfires ripping across North America have created massive plumes of smoke.
NASA astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) recently captured an image of Mount Rainier engulfed in smoke from nearby wildfires. In July, hundreds of wildfires ravaged regions across Canada, but this was not the end of wildland fires in North America during the summer. As of August 12, wildfires had burned over 84,000 acres (34,000 hectares) in Washington and Oregon, according to NASA.
The image shows smoke blowing from central and eastern Washington to Mount Rainier and also reveals thick plumes of smoke from the Grasshopper fire, ignited by a lightning strike, south of the volcano. This summer has been the worst fire season in the Pacific Northwest in over three decades, prompting evacuations, road closures, and unhealthy air quality levels.
As of August 12, over 2.7 million acres (1.1 million hectares) had burned, and dozens of uncontained wildfires remained as of Friday. The National Interagency Fire Center expects higher-than-normal fire risks through August. While addressing wildfires, exacerbated by climate change, remains a critical issue on Earth, the perspective from space offers a larger view and provides valuable data for wildfire-fighting efforts on the ground.
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