2025 Starts on Fire — Literally: The Hottest January on Record

We shouldn’t be this hot

In focus: wildfires in Patagonia haven’t diminished but multiplied (created by author)

Patagonia is still burning. In fact, wildfires that have already haven’t diminished .

On February 3, even a satellite image of the largest fire (one that I can see from my very window), which has been late December 2024. The last flames aren’t expected to die out until April, when autumn rains might bring the much-needed relief.

With this devastating and ongoing situation in my backyard, it would be tempting to assume that this is just Patagonia, helpless and surrendering to (yet another) dry and , turning tinder-like vegetation into — and aggravated by a climate-change-denying president pushing for extractions and cutting protection budgets and policies. And that, after back-to-back hottest years on record — breaching the ominous 1.5°C threshold — you’d think the world would give us a break.