Inhaling particulate matter is hard on human health. New research shows that Southern California’s Santa Ana winds can clear or exacerbate fine-particulate pollution depending on wildfire conditions.
wildfires
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Wildfire Smoke Boosts Photosynthetic Efficiency
Wildfires can destroy large tracts of vegetation. But their smoke plumes may help crops and other plants use sunlight more efficiently.
Posted inNews
Starting (and Stopping) a Fire to Study It
Fire experiments on peatlands in Southeast Asia have identified previously unknown emissions patterns and could point to ways to detect these smoldering fires before they become too big to fight.
Posted inNews
Where Australia’s Smoke Goes to Die
Wildfires from Down Under contribute to airborne pollution and carbon emissions—and some particulates can stay in the stratosphere for a year.
Posted inAGU News
Finding Wildfire’s Fingerprint in the Atmosphere
Smoke from burning landscapes is increasingly filling the air. Eos has dedicated its February 2020 issue to the increasingly important study of wildfire emissions.
Posted inFeatures
Firing Up Climate Models
Scientists are working to incorporate wildfire data into climate models, resolving hindrances related to scale, speed, and the complex feedbacks between the climate and wildfire emissions.
Posted inScience Updates
A Global Perspective on Wildfires
Satellites provide global-scale data that are invaluable in efforts to understand, monitor, and respond to wildfires and emissions, which are increasingly affecting climate and putting humans at risk.
Posted inFeatures
What Is Left in the Air After a Wildfire Depends on Exactly What Burned
Forecasting air quality after a wildfire is improving, thanks to more-refined models that measure the biomass going into the blaze and the emissions coming out.
Posted inNews
Five Environmental Consequences of Australia’s Fires
Australia’s road to recovery may be long: Here’s a developing list of how the fires are affecting glaciers, wildlife, water supplies, and global carbon emissions.
Posted inOpinions
Australia, Your Country Is Burning—Dangerous Climate Change Is Here With You Now
I am a climate scientist on holiday in the Blue Mountains, watching climate change in action.