A new NASA study shows that lightning storms are behind massive wildfires in North America.
- Number of wildfires caused by lightning on the rise
- Increased 2 to 5 percent a year
- RELATED: VIDEO: Burnout complete on 5,000-acre Tucker Fire
- NEWS 13+, BAY NEWS 9+ APPS UPGRADED: The new releases have a block-style layout that makes it easier to navigate, as well as an added section for Attractions Insider. A new weather section includes hour-by-hour forecasts and marine buoy data. Update your app today!
Researchers examined the cause of a recent increase of fires in Northern Canada and Alaska.
The team found increases of between two and five percent a year in the number of lightning-ignited fires since 1975.
With climate warming, NASA says these fires are likely to increase.
Study co-author Brendan Rogers at Woods Hole Research Center in Falmouth, Massachusetts, said these trends are likely to continue. “We expect an increasing number of thunderstorms, and hence fires, across the high latitudes in the coming decades as a result of climate change.”
They may keep moving farther north and could quickly alter northern landscapes.
Researchers say the study will help understand and predict the complex relationship between climate and fire.