Spatio-Temporal Analysis of Fire Events Over the Past 10 Years in the Central-East Region of Argentina and Surrounding Areas

Fire events pose significant challenges worldwide due to their impacts on ecosystems and human communities. Satellite remote sensing allows the spatial and temporal analysis of these events. VIIRS (Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite) is a calibrated instrument that provides fire data with global coverage at a 375 m spatial resolution. This study considers annual and seasonal fire events from January 2013 to December 2022 (10-year analysis) in the central-east region of Argentina. The annual study highlights a peak in fire pixel counts in 2020, with a 113% increase compared to the mean value observed throughout the entire study period. FRP mean annual values range from 9 (2015) to 11.9 (2020 and 2022). During the seasonal analysis, winter exhibited the highest fire pixel counts. As for FRP analysis, Autumn consistently recorded the lowest FRP mean values, ranging from 6.8 MW (2015) to 9.2 MW (2020). Conversely, the highest FRP mean values were observed in winter and spring. Standard deviation values were nearly twice the magnitude of FRP mean values in both annual and seasonal studies. Moreover, when adjusting a linear fit to assess the increase in annual and seasonal mean FRP values over the years, R2 and p-value suggest that the overall models may not be statistically significant at α = 0.05. Overall, this study provides insights to assess fire risks in the region by identifying seasonal trends and recurring fire-affected areas.