The large wildfire burning in and around Yosemite National Park
has already consumed more than 184,000 acres, and shows no signs of
slowing down. The blaze, which has been dubbed “Rim Fire,” is now the
largest fire in the Sierra Nevada mountain range and one of the largest
in California’s history. (Related: “With Rim Fire Near, a Look at Yosemite’s History With Fire.”)
The Rim Fire is one of more than 30 blazes
currently churning across the West. And a combination of higher
temperatures, untamed underbrush, less rain, and more developments in
the region means that the number and intensity of wildfires is likely to
increase in the coming years, says Don Wuebbles, a professor of Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Illinois.
“This probably is the new normal,” he says.
“If we look at how the climate has changed over the past 50
years—with warmer temperatures increasing beyond what we used to see in
the early part of the 20th century, and changes in precipitation—fires
will continue to happen and get worse and worse,” says Wuebbles, who
co-authored a draft federal report linking climate change to an increase in severe weather trends.
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