Burn Severity Portal expands data access and improves maps

The US Geological Survey announced improvements to the Burn Severity Portal on Wednesday 21 October 2026. The release increased consistency in previously released maps and expanded data access. The announcement covered multiple projects and types of fire data.

The 2026 third quarter release includes 315 fires from multiple fire seasons for Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (MTBS). It includes 25 fires from multiple seasons for the Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) project and 67 fire mapping data sets for the Rapid Assessment of Vegetation Cover After Wildfire (RAVG) project.

The release covers MTBS, which has mapped large fires across the United States from 1984 to present. Its archive has grown to nearly 31,000 fires.

Earlier map products were re-issued for improved consistency and to address issues. They include 221 fires for MTBS, 5 fire maps for BAER, 30 fire datasets for the National Park Service (NPS) project, two fires from 2026 for the Provisional Initial Assessment (PIA) project, and 43 fire mapping datasets for RAVG.

Expanded Direct Download data access is available for users. Requests can be made for fire occurrence and polygon products for Composite Burn Index, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS), NPS, PIA, Prairie Fires, and the Undersized Fire Mapping Project (UFPM). Raster mosaics by extent and year are available for NPS, PIA and UFPM products, in addition to MTBS and RAVG.

The release combines re-issued maps, new fire data and expanded download access for users. It covers products for MTBS, BAER, RAVG, NPS and PIA. The agency said the improvements strengthen tools used for wildfire response and analysis across multiple projects and fire seasons.