http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/earth_climate/wildfires/ Learn about the science of wildfires -- risk factors, smoke emissions, effective controls, role in forest ecology and long-term problems. en-us Thu, 16 Feb 2012 03:05:02 EST Thu, 16 Feb 2012 03:05:02 EST 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/earth_climate/wildfires/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120214134936.htm The American West has seen a recent increase in large wildfires due to droughts, the build-up of combustible fuel, or biomass, in forests, a spread of fire-prone species and increased tree mortality from insects and heat. A research team warns that these conditions may be "a perfect storm" for more fires. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 13:49:49 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120214134936.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120208132848.htm Wind conditions at a fire scene can make a critical difference on the behavior of the blaze and the safety of firefighters, even indoors, according to a new report. Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:28:28 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120208132848.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120118173701.htm Portions of the Amazon basin are experiencing a transition in energy and water cycles. Evidence suggests that the Amazon may also be transitioning from a net carbon sink to a net source. This research shows that although the Amazon is resilient to individual disturbances, such as drought, multiple disturbances override this, increasing the vulnerability of forest ecosystems to degradation. This review provides a framework for understanding the associations between natural variability and drivers of change. Wed, 18 Jan 2012 17:37:37 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120118173701.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111222133459.htm Researchers treated burnt soil with an organic polymer used in agriculture. Applying granules of the non-toxic polymer cut soil erosion by half in both laboratory and field experiments. Thu, 22 Dec 2011 13:34:34 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111222133459.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111220133913.htm Forest thinning to help prevent or reduce severe wildfire will release more carbon to the atmosphere than any amount saved by successful fire prevention. There may be valid reasons to thin forests – such as restoration of forest structure or health, wildlife enhancement or public safety – but increased carbon sequestration is not one of them. Tue, 20 Dec 2011 13:39:39 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111220133913.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111216084215.htm Large forest regions in Canada are apparently about to experience rapid change. Based on models, scientists can now show that there are threshold values for wildfires just like there are for epidemics. Large areas of Canada are apparently approaching this threshold value and may in future exceed it due to climate change. As a result both the area burnt down annually and the average size of the fires would increase, researchers say. Fri, 16 Dec 2011 08:42:42 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111216084215.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111207105429.htm In fire experiments conducted in uniformly furnished, but vacant Chicago-area townhouses, researchers uncovered temperature and heat-flow conditions that can seriously damage facepiece lenses on standard firefighter breathing equipment, a potential contributing factor for first-responder fatalities and injuries. Wed, 07 Dec 2011 10:54:54 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111207105429.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111110192306.htm By analyzing nearly a decade of satellite data, a team of scientists has created a model that can successfully predict the severity and geographic distribution of fires in the Amazon rain forest and the rest of South America months in advance. Thu, 10 Nov 2011 19:23:23 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111110192306.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111110142054.htm Tiny temperature changes on the Atlantic and Pacific oceans provide an excellent way to forecast wildfires in South American rainforests, new research shows. Thu, 10 Nov 2011 14:20:20 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111110142054.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111109111530.htm A new system built around an unmanned aerial vehicle has faced a real-world test in a West Virginia controlled forest burn, and proved its usefulness. Wed, 09 Nov 2011 11:15:15 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111109111530.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111107160237.htm Fire and life safety programs in Delaware offer a strategic, comprehensive and coordinated approach to fire prevention. A new study highlights the diversity of prevention initiatives underway in the state and documents how tradition, dedication, and a sense of community are keys to success for the program. Delaware was chosen for the study because some federal fire officials view the state as a model for fire and life safety practices. Mon, 07 Nov 2011 16:02:02 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111107160237.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111101125553.htm Drying of northern wetlands has led to much more severe peatland wildfires and nine times as much carbon released into the atmosphere, according to new research. Tue, 01 Nov 2011 12:55:55 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111101125553.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111031220600.htm Climate change, land use and other human-driven factors could pit savannas and forests against each other by altering the elements found by researchers to stabilize the two. Without this harmony, the habitats, or biomes, could increasingly encroach on one other to the detriment of the people and animals that rely on them. Mon, 31 Oct 2011 22:06:06 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111031220600.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111023135657.htm The largest and most comprehensive study yet done on the effect of biofuel production from West Coast forests has concluded that an emphasis on bioenergy would increase carbon dioxide emissions from these forests at least 14 percent. The findings are contrary to assumptions and some previous studies that suggest biofuels from this source would be carbon-neutral or even reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In this research, that wasn't true in any scenario. Sun, 23 Oct 2011 13:56:56 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111023135657.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111020025606.htm NASA has released a series of new satellite data visualizations that show tens of millions of fires detected worldwide from space since 2002. Thu, 20 Oct 2011 02:56:56 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111020025606.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111019171740.htm Wildfire, insect outbreaks and hurricanes destroy huge amounts of forest every year and increase the amount of carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere, but scientists are now learning more about another force that can significantly affect their climate impact. Researchers conclude in a new study that the albedo effect, which controls the amount of energy reflected back into space, is important in the climatic significance of several types of major forest disturbances. Wed, 19 Oct 2011 17:17:17 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111019171740.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111012113804.htm The US Department of Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate is funding experimental fire research at the National Institute of Standards and Technology to discover when and how quickly wildfire embers ignite fires in structures along the wildland urban interface, and what we can do to prevent it. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:38:38 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111012113804.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111011154457.htm It is one of the rarest shrubs in the southeastern United States, and for scientists trying to save it, the critically endangered Michaux's sumac (Rhus michauxii) is not cooperating. Tue, 11 Oct 2011 15:44:44 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111011154457.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111003151823.htm A forest may look like a forest, have many of the same trees that used to live there, but still lose the ecological, economic or cultural values that once made it what it was, researchers suggest. Mon, 03 Oct 2011 15:18:18 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111003151823.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110928110004.htm NIST will unleash its Dragon, an invention that bellows showers of glowing embers, at a unique wind tunnel test facility in Japan, where researchers will evaluate the vulnerability of outdoor deck assemblies and materials to ignition during wildfires, a growing peril that accounts for half of the nation's 10 most costly fires. Wed, 28 Sep 2011 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110928110004.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110915113756.htm Fires have continuously occurred on Earth for at least the last 400 million years. But since the 1970s, the frequency of wildfires has increased at least four-fold, and the total size of burn areas has increased at least six-fold in the western United States alone. Steadily rising, the US's bill for fighting wildfires now totals $1.5 billion per year. Thu, 15 Sep 2011 11:37:37 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110915113756.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110914143636.htm Humanity's relationship to fire -- including wildfires, burning of fossil fuels, controlled burns and human-caused fire -- is the focus of a report by an international team of scientists. Wed, 14 Sep 2011 14:36:36 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110914143636.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110914100254.htm Wildfires are often viewed as major disasters, and there is concern that climate change will increase their incidence. However, it is difficult to consider the true impact of past or future wildfires without understanding their place in natural and human history. A team of international researchers has identified ways of helping others distinguish between the fires that should be considered natural disasters and those that are beneficial. Wed, 14 Sep 2011 10:02:02 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110914100254.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110907124401.htm Like clues from an Agatha Christie mystery novel, trees can provide secrets about past events, and their rings are especially good at providing information about fires, some of which happened hundreds of years ago, according to studies from a Texas researcher. Wed, 07 Sep 2011 12:44:44 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110907124401.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110906134009.htm An aerial photography survey of 38,000 wildfire-burned acres in Idaho provided what is believed to be the first evidence that the invasive leafy spurge weed is displacing seedlings of native mountain big sagebrush. Tue, 06 Sep 2011 13:40:40 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110906134009.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110831120056.htm Two of the most destructive natural disasters of 2010 were closely linked by a single meteorological event, even though they occurred 1,500 miles (2,414 km) apart and were of completely different natures, a new NASA study suggests. Wed, 31 Aug 2011 12:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110831120056.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110822135018.htm A new study indicates a major climate oscillation in the Southern Hemisphere that is expected to intensify in the coming decades will likely cause increased wildfire activity in the southern half of South America. Mon, 22 Aug 2011 13:50:50 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110822135018.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110804081735.htm European forests are regularly attacked by fire with often disastrous ecological, economic and social consequences. The most common reaction has been to fight fires at all costs. Today, a new concept for managing fire is emerging, taking into account its positive aspects. Thu, 04 Aug 2011 08:17:17 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110804081735.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110728162636.htm Water isn't the only thing pouring over Niagara Falls. Pollution from fires in Ontario, Canada is also making the one thousand mile trip, while being measured by NASA's Aqua satellite. Thu, 28 Jul 2011 16:26:26 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110728162636.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110728162634.htm In a study published in this week's issue of Nature, Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) senior scientist Gauis Shaver and his colleagues, including lead author Michelle Mack of the University of Florida, describe the dramatic impacts of a massive Arctic wildfire on carbon releases to the atmosphere. The 2007 blaze on the North Slope of the Alaska's Brooks Mountain Range released 20 times more carbon to the atmosphere than what is annually lost from undisturbed tundra. Thu, 28 Jul 2011 16:26:26 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110728162634.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110727131415.htm After a 10,000-year absence, wildfires have returned to the Arctic tundra, and a new study shows that their impact could extend far beyond the areas blackened by flames. Wed, 27 Jul 2011 13:14:14 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110727131415.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110727131407.htm In 2007 the largest recorded tundra fire in the circumpolar arctic released approximately as much carbon into the atmosphere as the tundra has stored in the previous 50 years, say scientists. The study of the Anaktuvuk River fire on Alaska's North Slope revealed how rapidly a single tundra fire can offset or reverse a half-century worth of soil-stored carbon. Wed, 27 Jul 2011 13:14:14 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110727131407.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110725152854.htm Climate change in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem will increase the frequency of wildfires and alter the composition of the forests by 2050, according to a team of ecologists who modeled the effects of higher temperatures on fire occurrence. Mon, 25 Jul 2011 15:28:28 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110725152854.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110725152850.htm Climate is changing fire patterns in the west in a way that could markedly change the face of Yellowstone National Park, according to new research. Mon, 25 Jul 2011 15:28:28 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110725152850.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110725152847.htm An increase in wildfires due to climate change could rapidly and profoundly alter the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, according to a new study. The study suggests that rising temperatures caused by climate change could increase the frequency of large wildfires in Yellowstone to an unprecedented level, causing a major shift in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, with fewer dense forests and more open woodland, grass and shrub vegetation. Mon, 25 Jul 2011 15:28:28 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110725152847.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110722213438.htm The U.S. Northwest Forest Plan enacted in 1993 was designed to conserve old-growth forests and protect species such as the northern spotted owl, but researchers conclude in a new study that it had another powerful and unintended consequence -- increased carbon sequestration on public lands. Fri, 22 Jul 2011 21:34:34 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110722213438.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110719111704.htm A new study has found that some bird species in the desert southwest are less affected, and in some cases positively influenced, by widespread fire through their habitat. In fact, the researchers say that fire actually helps some bird species because of the habitat that is formed after a fire is positive for the bird's prey needs. Tue, 19 Jul 2011 11:17:17 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110719111704.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110719101757.htm Populations of spur-thighed tortoises (Testudo graeca), a species classified as vulnerable and at risk of extinction, can withstand fires if outbreaks occur once every three decades or more. However, the youngest tortoises are more vulnerable, and disappear after each fire, new research suggests. Tue, 19 Jul 2011 10:17:17 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110719101757.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110714142133.htm A new study concludes that the decline of large predators and herbivores in all regions of the world is causing substantial changes to Earth's terrestrial, freshwater, and marine ecosystems. The paper claims that the loss of apex consumers from ecosystems "may be humankind's most pervasive influence on nature." Thu, 14 Jul 2011 14:21:21 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110714142133.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110714132119.htm The amount of carbon dioxide taken out of the atmosphere by forests could be quadrupled in 100 years by harvesting regularly and using the wood in place of steel and concrete that devour fossil fuels during manufacturing, producing carbon dioxide, researchers say in a new study. Thu, 14 Jul 2011 13:21:21 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110714132119.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110708124346.htm An estimated two billion people in the developing world heat and cook with a biomass fuel such as wood, but the practice exposes people -- especially women -- to large doses of small-particle air pollution, which can cause premature death and lung disease. Fri, 08 Jul 2011 12:43:43 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110708124346.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110707092447.htm Researchers say it is likely that fire will become an increasingly important driver of atmospheric change as the world warms. Thu, 07 Jul 2011 09:24:24 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110707092447.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110701164042.htm NASA's Aura Satellite has provided a view of nitrogen dioxide levels coming from the fires in New Mexico and Arizona. Detecting nitrogen dioxide is important because it reacts with sunlight to create low-level ozone or smog and poor air quality. Fri, 01 Jul 2011 16:40:40 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110701164042.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110630112630.htm As homes and cities expand closer to forests and wildlands across the American West, increasing wildfire threats have created an unlikely new phenomena -- confidence in government. Recent studies show that people in neighborhoods adjacent to public forest lands can and do trust natural resource managers to a surprising degree, in part because the risks they face are so severe. Thu, 30 Jun 2011 11:26:26 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110630112630.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110627183942.htm The 2008 peat bog wildfires in North Carolina led to an increase in emergency room visits for respiratory and cardiovascular effects, records show. Mon, 27 Jun 2011 18:39:39 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110627183942.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110621114145.htm Researchers have analyzed recent federal strategies to restore forests on western U.S. forestlands. They evaluated treatments implemented under the U.S. National Fire Plan (NFP); activities included removing trees, shrubs, grasses and litter with the goal of either protecting communities from wildfires or restoring open forests and low-severity fire. Tue, 21 Jun 2011 11:41:41 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110621114145.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110616193918.htm The largest fire in the history of the state of Arizona continues to burn and emergency managers and responders are using satellite data from a variety of instruments to plan their firefighting containment strategies and mitigation efforts once the fires are out. Thu, 16 Jun 2011 19:39:39 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110616193918.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110531155402.htm Scientists have been investigating the effect of mountain pine beetle outbreaks on lodgepole pines in British Columbia. They have discovered that seeds from cones on the forest floor may provide a viable seed bank for lodgepole pine regeneration following forest destruction by mountain pine beetles. Tue, 31 May 2011 15:54:54 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110531155402.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110517121915.htm A new report has identified areas forest managers will focus on to maintain southern forests in the coming years. Tue, 17 May 2011 12:19:19 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110517121915.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110516161344.htm Cigarette smoking, forest fires and woodburning can release a chemical that may be at least partly responsible for human health problems related to smoke exposure, according to a new study. "We found isocyanic acid in a number of places, from air in downtown Los Angeles and air downwind of a Colorado wildfire, to cigarette smoke," said the lead author. Mon, 16 May 2011 16:13:13 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110516161344.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110504080847.htm The occurrence of forest fires is a natural phenomenon in Mediterranean ecosystems. Researchers in Spain recently undertook a project in order to ascertain the extent to which forest fires and common post-fire treatments affect key species like the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus). Wed, 04 May 2011 08:08:08 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110504080847.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110328115430.htm Recent fire and brush control studies in the Rolling Plains of Texas on a working ranch-scale showed the benefits and limitations of managed fires for reducing mesquite encroachment while sustaining livestock production. Mon, 28 Mar 2011 11:54:54 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110328115430.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110314111246.htm Researchers have constructed a 226-year history of fire in southern Illinois by looking at fire scars in tree stumps. Their study, the most in-depth fire history reported for the upper Midwest, reveals that changes in the frequency of fires dating back to the time of early European settlement permanently altered the ecology of the region. Mon, 14 Mar 2011 11:12:12 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110314111246.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110225091007.htm European forests are regularly attacked by fire with often disastrous environmental, economic and social consequences. The most common reaction has been to fight fires at all costs because the negative impacts have been the primary concern. But now, a new approach to territorial management and to fire prevention and fighting is indispensable if we are to sustainably attenuate the intensity and severity of fires in Europe. Fri, 25 Feb 2011 09:10:10 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110225091007.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110218221921.htm Alaskan forests used to be important players in Mother Nature's game plan for regulating carbon dioxide levels in the air. It's elementary earth science: Trees take up carbon dioxide and give off oxygen. But now, American and Canadian researchers report that climate change is causing wildfires to burn larger swaths of Alaskan trees and to char the groundcover more severely, turning the black spruce forests of Alaska from repositories of carbon to generators of it. And the more carbon dioxide they release, the greater impact that may have in turn on future climate change. Fri, 18 Feb 2011 22:19:19 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110218221921.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110218111711.htm Prescribed burning to reduce the hazards of bushfires may do more harm than good in some circumstances, according to a group of leading environmental scientists. Fri, 18 Feb 2011 11:17:17 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110218111711.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110122105606.htm While wet and snowy weather has dominated the western U.S., persistent drought conditions are likely to linger in the Southern Plains and Southeast through mid to late spring, according to NOAA's National Weather Service. La Niña has kept storms and most of their precipitation in the north, leaving the South drier than normal. Sat, 22 Jan 2011 10:56:56 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110122105606.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110110090427.htm Forest fires usually spread out of control very quickly. Fires that produce a lot of smoke are particularly challenging for the emergency services, because the source of the fire is then especially hard to find. A new radiometric sensor can pinpoint the heart of the flames, even when visibility is limited. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 09:04:04 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110110090427.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101213151417.htm New research indicates that the speed of early forest clearance following human colonization of the South Island of New Zealand was much faster and more intense than previously thought. Mon, 13 Dec 2010 15:14:14 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101213151417.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101208083535.htm The fire disaster in the Carmel Mountains near Haifa is a typical example of climate change effect and a taste of the future, says a researcher. Ten years ago he had warned of expected climatic fluctuations, heat events, decreased rainfall and delayed late winter rainfall, all of which would lead to increased risk of intense forest fires. Wed, 08 Dec 2010 08:35:35 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101208083535.htm