Controlled fires, as a method, refer to the deliberate ignition and management of fire under predefined environmental, spatial, and temporal conditions to achieve specific experimental, ecological, or land-management objectives. In research and applied settings, they are implemented using standardized ignition patterns, fuel preparation, and meteorological criteria to manipulate fire intensity, spread rate, and residence time while maintaining safety and reproducibility. Controlled fires enable systematic study of fire behavior, combustion processes, vegetation and soil responses, emissions, and post-fire ecological dynamics, and they often require detailed planning, monitoring instrumentation, and adherence to regulatory and risk-mitigation protocols.
A new study found that giant sequoias were nearly four times as likely to survive extreme wildfires in forests managed with prescribed burns, which decrease tree mortality. The work is published in the journal Nature Communications.
Plants & Animals
Jul 21, 2026
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Scientists are calling for wildlife surveys to be conducted within hours of prescribed burns after new research revealed that evidence of animal deaths can disappear in less than two weeks, significantly underestimating the ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 20, 2026
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Prescribed fires are vital for reducing wildfire risk and sustaining forest biodiversity. But they also contribute significantly to air pollution and smoke exposure, according to new research from the University of Georgia. ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 2, 2026
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A new study finds that burning 500,000 acres (202,000 hectares) of California conifer forests each year with prescribed fire could cut deadly pollution from wildfire smoke by roughly 10% over a decade.
Earth Sciences
Jun 11, 2026
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Fire began crackling like approaching rain on a recent morning in the Xerente Indigenous Territory in Tocantins in northern Brazil. But the Indigenous residents weren't afraid and didn't rush to put it out.
Environment
Jun 7, 2026
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In May and June of most years, NASA satellites typically begin to detect large numbers of wildland fires throughout the Top End and Arnhem Land regions of Australia's Northern Territory. On some days, especially in the afternoon, ...
Environment
Jun 5, 2026
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With peak wildfire season approaching, scientists with NASA's FireSense project have created low-cost thermal sensors to install on fire bulldozers that will alert firefighters when heat from a nearby fire reaches a dangerous ...
Environment
May 28, 2026
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Test burns involving wooden structures of varying heights suggest taller buildings tend to be more prolific producers of the wind-carried firebrands that are a leading cause of structure ignition in wildfires. The findings, ...
Environment
May 28, 2026
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Restoring dry forests in the Pacific Northwest, shaped by frequent low-intensity fire and widely spaced trees, often means thinning dense stands that accumulated after decades of fire suppression. This can make forests healthier ...
Ecology
May 12, 2026
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Invasive woody plants present a major ecological challenge in eastern U.S. forests by outcompeting native species and spreading quickly, forming dense thickets that crowd out native plants and disrupt ecosystems. Land managers ...
Plants & Animals
May 11, 2026
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