Smoke from wildfires burning in the western United States carries harmful pollutants across the country.
wildfires
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Amazon Deforestation and Fires are a Hazard to Public Health
Deforestation in the Amazon has dropped since the early 2000s, but it is slowly climbing again. A new study shows the impact of that climb on public health—and how much worse conditions could be.
Posted inScience Updates
Wildfires Are Threatening Municipal Water Supplies
Climate change is driving an increase in catastrophic wildfires; consumers see, smell, and taste the effects in their water. Water utilities must prepare for worse times ahead.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Improved Algorithms Help Scientists Monitor Wildfires from Space
Wildfires release pollutants that harm human health. Quality satellite monitoring can help track these pollutants and predict where they may become health hazards.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
How Hospitals Respond to Wildfires
A new study tracks intensive care unit admissions after periods of wildfire smoke pollution. A prolonged or severe smoke event has the potential to strain hospital resources.
Posted inNews
Amazon Forests Are Turning into Savannas
Floodplain forests have low resilience to repeated exposure to wildfires. As climate change increases the instances of fires, forests may transform to less productive grassland ecosystems.
Posted inNews
Los Incendios forestales podrían exacerbar el asma en el oeste de los Estados Unidos
Un nuevo estudio predice que para la década de 2050, el humo de los incendios forestales hará que la región gaste $850 millones más cada año para tratar el asma.
Posted inNews
The Rain Forest Can Recover After Fire, but It’s Not the Same
New research finds that temperatures rise in the Amazon rain forest after a fire, even in areas that are not converted to agricultural land or pastures.
Posted inNews
Zooming In on Small Fires in Africa
By analyzing high-resolution satellite images, researchers found that fires burning in Africa were undercounted by as much as 80%.