Wildfires
Wildfire smoke could lead to tens of thousands of deaths by 2050
Wildfire smoke could lead to tens of thousands of deaths by 2050 Wildfire smoke exposure could lead to tens of thousands of excess deaths in the US by 2050, according to a new study. The study projects that average exposures across the US population will increase two-to-three-fold in 2050 relative to 2011-2020 due to climate […]
📰 News
San Francisco company uses AI to insure homes in California wildfire zones
San Francisco company uses AI to insure homes in California wildfire zones A San Francisco company is using AI to insure homes in California wildfire zones. The traditional insurance market has been unable to provide adequate coverage due to the high risk of wildfires. Thousands of homeowners have been forced onto the costly and limited […]
💻 Technology
Boosting timber harvesting in national forests while cutting public oversight won’t solve America’s wildfire problem
Boosting timber harvesting in national forests while cutting public oversight won’t solve America’s wildfire problem Boosting timber harvesting in national forests while cutting public oversight won’t solve America’s wildfire problem. In fact, increasing logging without proper thinning and oversight could even exacerbate the issue. The western United States is facing another destructive wildfire season, with […]
📰 News
Wildfire disasters are increasingly in the news, yet less land is burning globally – here’s why
Wildfire disasters are increasingly in the news, yet less land is burning globally – here’s why Despite more intense wildfires being reported globally, the total area burned has actually decreased by 26% over the past two decades, according to new research. The majority of global wildfire exposure (85%) occurs in Africa, where agricultural expansion and […]
📰 News
Grand Canyon’s Dragon Bravo megafire shows the growing wildfire threat to water systems
Grand Canyon’s Dragon Bravo megafire shows the growing wildfire threat to water systems Wildfires like the Dragon Bravo Fire are increasingly affecting water supplies across the US, creating a compounding crisis that experts are only beginning to address. The damage caused by wildfires on water infrastructure can be devastating, as seen in incidents such as […]
📰 News
Wildfire season is starting weeks earlier in California – a new study shows how climate change is driving the expansion
Wildfire season is starting weeks earlier in California – a new study shows how climate change is driving the expansion Wildfire season in California is starting weeks earlier than it did in the 1990s, with some regions experiencing a shift of up to 2.5 months earlier. A new study found that human-caused climate change is […]
📰 News
Is that wildfire smoke plume hazardous? New satellite tech can map smoke plumes in 3D for better air quality alerts at neighborhood scale
Is that wildfire smoke plume hazardous? New satellite tech can map smoke plumes in 3D for better air quality alerts at neighborhood scale New satellite technology can map wildfire smoke plumes in 3D, providing more accurate air quality alerts at a neighborhood scale. The technology uses data from NASA’s TEMPO satellite to determine the height […]
🔬 Science
Managing forests and other ecosystems under rising threats requires thinking across wide-ranging scenarios
Managing forests and other ecosystems under rising threats requires thinking across wide-ranging scenarios Climate change is causing unprecedented threats to forests and ecosystems, including giant sequoia forests in California, which are facing multiple stressors like wildfire, drought, and pests. Traditional management approaches focus on maintaining or restoring historical ecosystem conditions, but this may not work […]
🔬 Science
NASA Airborne Sensor’s Wildfire Data Helps Firefighters Take Action
NASA Airborne Sensor’s Wildfire Data Helps Firefighters Take Action NASA’s AVIRIS-3 airborne imaging spectrometer helped firefighters contain a wildfire in Alabama by providing real-time data on the fire’s location, extent, and intensity. The sensor detected the 120-acre fire on March 19 and transmitted images to firefighters’ phones in minutes, allowing them to limit its spread […]
🔬 Science
Controlled burns reduce wildfire risk, but they require trained staff and funding − this could be a rough year
Controlled burns reduce wildfire risk, but they require trained staff and funding − this could be a rough year Wildfires are becoming more frequent, larger, and catastrophic in the western United States due to climate change, human activity, and vegetation buildup. The U.S. Forest Service has issued a 10-year strategy to scale up controlled burns […]
📰 News