Compared to a nearby wildfire that primarily burned vegetation, the smoke plume from the urban Eaton Fire contained 3 times as much arsenic and 50 times as much lead.
wildfires
Posted inResearch & Developments
Judge Stops USDA’s Radical Restructuring, For Now
A judge ruled that the U.S. Department of Agriculture can’t move forward with its efforts to relocate thousands of employees and close U.S. Forest Service regional offices.
Posted inNews
Wildfires Burned in Antarctica 90 Million Years Ago
A new study finds evidence for the southernmost wildfires currently known, which may have facilitated a transition from temperate rainforest to peatland in Antarctica.
Posted inEditors' Vox
Where Fire Ends, Chemistry Begins
Once smoke is generated, chemical reactions reshape its gaseous and particulate constituents, altering what travels downwind and what people, ecosystems, and the climate are exposed to.
Posted inNews
Fast, Severe Wildfires Can Change How Forests Grow Back
These blazes can cause ecological shifts even in fire-adapted forests.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
In Alaska, Wildfires Help Prevent Future Burns. Will That Feedback Loop Hold?
Without the suppressive effects of younger vegetation, Alaskan fire activity would be 5 times higher.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Remote Sensing Mitigated the Impact of the 2025 Los Angeles Wildfires
Airborne Visible Infrared Imaging Spectrometer 3 (AVIRIS-3) observations supported situational awareness, inspections, infrastructure assessment, and debris-flow management.
Posted inResearch & Developments
Why Did the Grand Canyon Flood?
Last weekend, flash flooding in the Grand Canyon killed two, left one missing, and forced dozens to evacuate. On Monday, the National Park Service shared that approximately 40% of the Transcanyon Waterline—the national park’s only water pipeline—had been damaged or destroyed.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
What Will the Future of Alaskan Wildfire Look Like?
More and larger fires, including in areas of historically low fire activity, are likely but not a given.
Posted inResearch & Developments
Forest Service to End Protection for 45 Million Acres of Forest
The U.S. Forest Service has moved forward with a rule to withdraw protections from 45 million acres of pristine national forests.