Why fires spread quickly in modern cities ― and how to slow them

Nature, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown

Published: Jan. 17, 2025

Language: Английский

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Seasonal vapor pressure deficit and temperature effects on carbon dioxide and water dynamics in a prevalent crop rotation in the northern Great Plains

Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 363, P. 110425 - 110425

Published: Jan. 27, 2025

Language: Английский

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Climate Influences on Day and Overnight Use at California State Beaches and Coastal Parks

Land, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 14(2), P. 324 - 324

Published: Feb. 6, 2025

State beaches and parks provide access to coastal environments for recreational activities that rely on the ocean, climate, scenic amenities. Approximately 46 million people visit state in California annually, another 20 other types of park units located Coastal Zone, which together constitute 72% overall visitation system. We utilized monthly attendance estimates available between 2001 2020 assess influence extreme drought or wet conditions day use overnight use. include direct ocean water-dependent recreation from swimming scenery, while range forests historical sites may some but are not directly dependent water. unit climate were analyzed by region according seasonal variability moderate categories using Palmer Drought Severity Index. found is more sensitive than parks, particularly during times drought,

Language: Английский

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Increasing Hydroclimatic Whiplash Can Amplify Wildfire Risk in a Warming Climate

Global Change Biology, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 31(2)

Published: Feb. 1, 2025

On January 7 and 8, 2025, a series of wind-driven wildfires occurred in Los Angeles County Southern California. Two these fires ignited dense woody chaparral shrubland immediately burned into adjacent populated areas–the Palisades Fire on the coastal slopes Santa Monica Mountains Eaton fire foothills San Gabriel Mountains. Both ultimately eclipsed traditionally-defined "wildland-urban interface" boundaries by burning structure-to-structure as an urban conflagration. The scope devastation is staggering; at time writing, have together killed least 29 people, destroyed over 16,000 structures (Helsel 2025), are expected to become costliest global wildfire disaster record. ecosystems that prevail across southern California (CSC) evolved with frequent wildfire. Regions Mediterranean climates (like CSC) characterized cool, wet winters hot, dry summers. Vegetation typically becomes progressively drier, corresponding landscape-level flammability rising, from spring through summer peaking early autumn prior onset rainy season sometime between October December. region also susceptible strong, downslope "Santa Ana" windstorms during winter, which cause air warm it accelerates descends steep mountain slopes, further desiccating vegetation. Thus, (and, increasingly, winter) months bring episodic periods elevated risk CSC; majority region's fastest-moving most historically destructive this window overlap critically vegetation strong winds (Abatzoglou et al. 2023). catastrophic 2025 were propelled especially extreme combination two recognized factors: (1) wind gusts 80 mph (35 m/s) (2) exceptionally following start unusually antecedent temperatures driving prolonged episode atmospheric evaporative demand. But there was third contributor: consecutive anomalously (in 2022–2023 2023–2024), led abundant growth herbaceous CSC. This remarkable wet-to-dry sequence (Figure 1A), therefore, set stage for CSC disasters unfold first facilitating prodigious fuel accumulation previous growing seasons (Keeley 2004), then subsequently drying produce exceptional far winter (when Ana common). Globally, climate change has increased potential primarily greater aridity (Jain 2022). In CSC, hotter drive increasing demand (i.e., "thirst"), out This, conjunction increasingly delayed (Goss 2020), may be temporal (Swain 2021). As events vividly illustrate, however, transitions conditions amplify risks exacerbating desiccation cycles. Indeed, regimes (including where occurrence varies strongly inter-annual variations biomass (Swetnam 2016), hydroclimate volatility causally linked activity. recent review, we reported rapid swings (and vice versa)–what term "hydroclimate whiplash"–will broadly increase due 2025). stems thermodynamically-driven increases atmosphere's water vapor-holding water-evaporating capacity, raise intensity ceiling both precipitation demand, respectively. Therein, quantified projected more than doubling terrestrial whiplash warming level 3°C. ~25% late-season moisture variability (July–December SPEI) concurrent mean trend 1895–2024 1B), coincided ~36% maximum amplitude weather peak offshore (November–January) 1980 1C). We suggest, volatile many regions shifts usually frequent–and offer clear example consequences. While amplifies severe globally (Jones 2022), non-climatic factors contribute substantially disasters. Population-level exposure ballooned peri-urban areas expand rapidly fire-adapted (Rao Land use decisions, expanding extent invasive grasses, agricultural abandonment, historical suppression all crisis varying degrees, depending local context Accordingly, interventions greatest demonstrated near-term benefit generally those implemented locally. These include strengthening building codes encourage or mandate fire-resistant structures, reducing around homes communities, minimizing human-caused ignitions conditions, public education improving communication technologies facilitate effective emergency response, fire-aware land planning, leveraging skillful predictions strategically allocate firefighting personnel equipment (Bowman 2020). Increasing whiplash, other well-established impacts activity will accelerate regional-to-global scales. Humans, capable agents changeand not only possible, but necessary, stem tide disastrous offsetting climatological via extensive sustained risk-reducing resilience communities. Daniel L. Swain: conceptualization, data curation, formal analysis, investigation, methodology, project administration, software, visualization, writing – original draft, review editing. John T. Abatzoglou: Christine M. Albano: Manuela I. Brunner: Noah S. Diffenbaugh: Crystal Kolden: Andreas F. Prein: Deepti Singh: Christopher B. Skinner: editing; visualization. Thomas W. Swetnam: Danielle Touma: authors declare no conflicts interest. All used calculate SPEI its trends PRISM dataset (accessible via: https://prism.oregonstate.edu) FWI GridMET various options at: https://www.climatologylab.org/gridmet.html).

Language: Английский

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Fractal Dimension Time Series and Interaction Between Entropic Surfaces of Urban Meteorology and Pollutants in a Geographic Basin: Dynamic Effects, Thermal Flows and Anomalous Diffusion

Fractal and Fractional, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 9(2), P. 114 - 114

Published: Feb. 13, 2025

In three periods of 3.25 years each, and at the same six different heights a basin geomorphology, measurements were made, in form time series, urban meteorological variables (MV) (temperature, relative humidity, wind speed magnitude) pollutants (P) (PM10, PM2.5, CO). It is verified that each series has fractal dimension, value its maximum Kolmogorov entropy determined. These values generate two entropic surfaces according to measurement periods: one for meteorology another pollutants. The calculation gradient surface multiplied by average temperature period location gives, approximately, force location. Combining these results with an analysis ratio between entropies pollutant entropies, it shown morphology forces associated are dominant, source heat, there high probability they produce extreme events. This condition also favors anomalous subdiffusion.

Language: Английский

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Interaction Between Maximum Entropies of Urban Meteorology and Pollutants: Effects on Relative Humidity and Temperature in the Boundary Layer of a Basin Geomorphology

Atmosphere, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 16(3), P. 337 - 337

Published: March 17, 2025

Using chaos theory, maximum entropies are calculated for 108 time series, each consisting of 28,463 hourly data urban meteorology and pollutants. The series were measured with standardized certified instruments (EPA) in six locations at different heights three periods (2010/2013, 2017/2020, 2019/2022) a basin geomorphology. Each corresponds to relative humidity (RH), temperature (T), wind speed magnitude (WS), pollutant 10 µm particulate matter (PM10), 2.5 (PM2.5), carbon monoxide (CO). These pollutants the top places presence studied geomorphology incidence population diseases. From entropies, quotient is constructed between first two variables (RH T) sum anthropogenic pollutants, demonstrating gradual decay that dominated by latter leads more excited warm boundary layer, due thermal transfers, which makes it unpredictable, increasing its capacity contain water. It verified diffusion anomalous alpha < 1 contamination has high probability, using heavy-tailed probability function, causing extreme events influencing meteorology.

Language: Английский

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Hydrological Whiplash: Highlighting the Need for Better Understanding and Quantification of Sub‐Seasonal Hydrological Extreme Transitions

Hydrological Processes, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 39(3)

Published: March 1, 2025

ABSTRACT In this commentary, we aim to (1) describe ways that hydrological intensification and whiplash (sub‐seasonal transitions between extremes) may impact water management decision‐making, (2) introduce the complexities of identifying quantifying extreme transitions, (3) discuss processes controlling trends in extremes through time, (4) considerations involved modeling (5) motivate additional research by suggesting priority questions diverge from an assumption independence events.

Language: Английский

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Identification of the maize drought-resistant gene Zinc-finger Inflorescence Meristem 23 through high-resolution temporal transcriptome analysis

International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown, P. 142347 - 142347

Published: March 1, 2025

Language: Английский

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Interdecadal variability of terrestrial water storage since 2003

Communications Earth & Environment, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 6(1)

Published: March 29, 2025

Language: Английский

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Seismic data provide a deep dive into groundwater health

Physics Today, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 2025(03)

Published: March 27, 2025

Language: Английский

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