Extreme fire weather in Chile driven by climate change and El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO).

ABSTRACT: A string of fierce fires broke out in Chile in the austral summer 2023, just six years after the record-breaking 2017 fire season. Favored by extreme weather conditions, fire activity has dramatically risen in recent years in this Andean country. A total of 1.7 million ha. burned during the last decade, tripling figures of the prior decade. Six of the seven most destructive fire seasons on record occurred since 2014. Here, we analyze the progression during the last two decades of the weather conditions associated with increased fire risk in Central Chile (30°-39° S). Fire weather conditions (including high temperatures, low humidity, dryness, and strong winds) increase the potential for wildfires, once ignited, to rapidly spread. We show that the concurrence of El Niño and climate-fueled d

SUBMITTER: Cordero RR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10806187 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature