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Western Wildfires and Climate Change

July 25, 2013 by admin

Interesting info graphic from the Union of Concerned Scientists helps to highlight the importance of understanding and controlling these large conflagrations.

Infographic: Western Wildfires and Climate Change

Rising temperatures are increasing wildfire risk throughout the Western U.S.

DOWNLOAD: Infographic: Western Wildfires and Climate Change | Infographic: Western Wildfires and Climate Change — Panel 1 | Infographic: Western Wildfires and Climate Change — Panel 2 | Infographic: Western Wildfires and Climate Change — Panel 3

Learn More | The Science Behind the Infographic | Share this Infographic

Enlarge Image: Full Infographic | Panel 1 | Panel 2 | Panel 3

Learn More About Wildfires and Climate Change in the Western U.S.

Panel 1: Wildfires and Wildfire Season

  • The number of large wildfires — defined as those covering more than 1,000 acres — is increasing throughout the region. Over the past 12 years, every state in the Western U.S. has experienced an increase in the average number of large wildfires per year compared to the annual average from 1980 to 2000.
  • Wildfire season is generally defined as the time period between the year’s first and last large wildfires. This infographic highlights the length of the wildfire season for the Western U.S. as a region. Local wildfire seasons vary by location, but have almost universally become longer over the past 40 years.

Panel 2: Rising Temperatures and Earlier Snowmelt

  • Temperatures are increasing much faster in the Western U.S. than for the planet as a whole. Since 1970, average annual temperatures in the Western U.S. have increased by 1.9° F, about twice the pace of the global average warming.
  • Scientists are able to gauge the onset of spring snowmelt by evaluating streamflow gauges throughout the Western U.S. Depending on location, the onset of spring snowmelt is occurring 1-4 weeks earlier today than it did in the late 1940s.

Panel 3: Future Projections

  • The projected increase in annual burn area varies depending on the type of ecosystem. Higher temperatures are expected to affect certain ecosystems, such as the Southern Rocky Mountain Steppe-Forest of central Colorado, more than others, such as the semi-desert and desert of southern Arizona and California. Every ecosystem type, however, is projected to experience an increase in average annual burn area.
  • The range of projected temperature increases in the Western U.S. by mid-century (2040 – 2070) represents a choice of two possible futures — from one in which we drastically reduce heat-trapping emissions (the projected low end of a lower emissions pathway) to a future in which we continue with “business as usual” (the projected high end of a higher emissions pathway).

The Science Behind the Infographic

  • The Western Wildfires and Climate Change infographic is based on careful evaluations of published scientific research and publicly accessible federal wildfire data.
  • Learn more about the methodology and assumptions behind the infographic.

Share this Infographic

  • Rights and permissions: You are free to use and post this infographic without alterations online, in written materials, and in presentations. We request that any online use includes proper citation and a link to this web page.

http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/science_and_impacts/impacts/infographic-wildfires-climate-change.html

Filed Under: News, Uncategorized

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Michael Gollner
Retweet on TwitterMichael Gollner Retweeted
16 Aug

Today's edition of the CA Fire Science Seminar is only a few hours away! We have a fantastic talk lined up for today featuring @erica_fischer from @OregonState. Link to register: . Organized by @gollnerfire @pyrogeog @CaFireScience

Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: Wildfire impacts on water infrastructure. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar.

August 16, 2022 at 2PM Pacific with Dr. Erica Fisher. More details coming soon!

berkeley.zoom.us

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16 Aug

The Berkeley Fire Lab is recruiting again! Positions available at the Postdoctoral, PhD, and undergraduate levels. Wildfires, fires on spacecraft, and fire dynamics... check us out! #wildlife @BayAreaPostdocs #Fire

Opportunities

We study combustion and fire phenomena using experimental and analytical techniques. A strong background in heat transfer, combustion, fluid mechanics...

firelab.berkeley.edu

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Retweet on TwitterMichael Gollner Retweeted
15 Aug

🔈🔥❄️New post-doc job opportunity at our Centre, @ImperialHazelab working with @GuillermoRein on the project FireFrost which looks at smouldering Arctic fires. Deadline 31st August - more info and how to apply here ⬇️

Post-doctoral opportunity: Arctic fires with an emphasis on smouldering combustion and fire spread - Leverhulme Wildfires Centre

Job summary Applications are invited for a Research Associate to study experimentally smouldering Arctic fires and join Imperial Hazelab which is the ...

centreforwildfires.org

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Retweet on TwitterMichael Gollner Retweeted
15 Aug

In this week's #MondayArchiveDig, I would like to highlight episode 22 with @gollnerfire You can talk about anything with Michael, really... but here we chose to dig into the role of combustion science and fluid mechanics in understanding fires.

Twitter feed video.
Image for the Tweet beginning: In this week's #MondayArchiveDig, I
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13 Aug

Wow https://t.co/b1nmkTMr62

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