More summer wildfires? (Science for Alaska Lecture Series)

February 13, 2019

University Relations

On Tuesday, Feb. 19, Randi Jandt will present “Will Defrosting the ‘Icebox’ Lead to More Summer Wildfires in Alaska?” The talk is part of the 2019 Science for Alaska Lecture Series, sponsored by the Geophysical Institute and presented Tuesdays from 7-8 p.m. at Raven Landing, 1222 Cowles Street. Other discussions will focus on Alaska’s future climate, unmanned aircraft and astronomy.

Wildfires were in the news last fall — again. Have you wondered what drives large fire seasons and whether climate or humans are more to blame? Here’s an Alaska perspective on climatic and environmental changes we've observed so far and how they affect wildfire incidence, size, seasonality, effects, and severity. Since many environmental factors (temperature, lightning, permafrost, forest make-up) contribute to fire processes, an interdisciplinary approach is essential to predicting what fire seasons of the future will be like. We’ll discuss current thinking on what will happen in Alaska with climate projections in the not-so-distant future.

For more information visit www.gi.alaska.edu/science-alaska-lecture-series/ .

Talks are free and open to the public. All ages are encouraged to attend.