Western Europe is experiencing a summer of weather extremes.
drought
Posted inResearch & Developments
Climate Change Made Spain Wildfires At Least 20 Times More Likely
Over the past two weeks, large wildfires in southwestern France and central Spain have burned 255,000 hectares, displaced hundreds of thousands of people, and created extremely poor air quality even hundreds of kilometers away. Though firefighters have now contained the major fires, a forecasted heat wave and windy weather are threatening to worsen the situation.
Climate change played a role in creating the conditions for these fires to burn and spread, a new analysis has found.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
A Satellite-Based Global Carbon Flux Product is Sensitive to Droughts
A parsimonious ecosystem model constrained by data from NASA’s Soil Moisture Active and Passive mission generates a global daily carbon flux product that is highly sensitive to drought and pluvial events.
Posted inNews
Most of the U.S. West Will Face Above-Normal Wildfire Risk This Summer
The National Interagency Fire Center predicts elevated wildfire potential across much of the West and many Southeast states through August.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Let’s Not Forget About Long Droughts
Why do conceptual hydrologic models struggle to model long-term droughts? A new study investigates.
Posted inNews
Antibiotic Resistance Might Get a Boost from Droughts
Drought has the potential to turn normal soils into perfect breeding grounds for antibiotic-resistant bacteria, new research has found.
Posted inNews
Ancient Maya Wetlands Reveal Settlement That Thrived Amid “Collapse”
A newly excavated site provides evidence that Maya communities migrated from urban areas to rural wetlands during times of intense drought.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Trees Shed Their Leaves to Adapt to Droughts
The browning or loss of tree leaves that can be observed during droughts may be a coping mechanism to deal with dry circumstances by avoiding additional water stress.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Severe 2023 Drought: Sinking Carbon Sink in the Amazon
The Amazon forest has been a reliable carbon sink, soaking up some of humanity’s carbon emissions, but a severe drought in 2023 adds to growing concern that this ecosystem service is at risk.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Drought Drove the Amazon’s 2023 Switch to a Carbon Source
The change was caused by thirsty vegetation taking up less carbon than normal, not by the year’s extended fire season, new research shows.