Fires, as a research topic, encompass the study of uncontrolled combustion processes in natural or built environments, including their ignition mechanisms, propagation dynamics, energy release, and interaction with surrounding materials and atmospheres. Scientific investigation addresses thermal radiation, convection, and conduction, flame chemistry, plume behavior, and the production and transport of particulates and gaseous emissions. Research spans wildland and forest fires, structural and industrial fires, and their impacts on ecosystems, air quality, climate, and human health. It also includes fire detection, modeling, and suppression strategies, as well as risk assessment and mitigation within environmental, engineering, and public safety frameworks.
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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Southern California is emerging from yet another round of wildfires just as the wildfire season gets underway. It's been less than 18 months since catastrophic wildfires hit the communities of Altadena and Pacific Palisades.
Environment
May 26, 2026
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An international team of scientists has used artificial intelligence and 35 years of satellite data to uncover the shocking scale of environmental destruction in one of the world's most important ecosystems.
Environment
May 26, 2026
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10
The most destructive wildfire season on record in Europe was in 2025, with more than 1 million hectares burned and tens of thousands of people displaced by fires across the continent.
Environment
May 22, 2026
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Larry Graves pulled up to a home tucked into a Colorado mountainside. His radio was crackling, as was the wildfire burning beyond the trees—it was time to move.
Environment
May 22, 2026
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When fire tore through Los Angeles County in January 2025, westerly winds blew most of the smoke and ash over the Pacific, keeping the main measure of air quality, total mass of particles smaller than 2.5 microns, at or near ...
Environment
May 21, 2026
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The world's forests form a vast network of carbon reservoirs, keeping carbon sequestered from the atmosphere where its presence is disrupting Earth's climate systems. Many corporate, national and state climate policies rely ...
Environment
May 20, 2026
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A fast-growing wildfire sparked by the fatal crash of a small medical plane outside Ruidoso, New Mexico, has triggered evacuations for a rural area north of the Capitan Mountains and closures in the Lincoln National Forest, ...
Environment
May 19, 2026
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Across the western United States, wildfires are increasing in size and intensity. As the climate continues to warm, more extreme wildfires will reshape landscapes and pose a growing risk to human health and natural ecosystems ...
Earth Sciences
May 18, 2026
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57
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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