Climate-linked escalation of societally disastrous wildfires

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Cunningham, Calum X.; Abatzoglou, John T.; Kolden, Crystal A.; Williamson, Grant J.; Steuer, Markus; Bowman, David M. J. S.
• 署名单位: University of Tasmania; University of California System; University of California Merced; Munich RE Group
• 刊物名称: SCIENCE
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0036-8075; 1095-9203
• DOI: 10.1126/science.adr5127
• 发表日期: 2025-10-02
• 页码: 53-58
• 关键词: FIRE

摘要

Climate change and land mismanagement are creating increasingly fire-prone built and natural environments. However, despite worsening fire seasons, evidence is lacking globally for trends in socially and economically disastrous wildfires, partly due to sparse systematic records. Using a 44-year dataset (1980 to 2023) we analyze the distribution, trends, and climatic conditions connected with the most lethal and costly wildfires. Disastrous wildfires occurred globally over this period but were concentrated in the Mediterranean and temperate conifer biomes. Disaster risk was highest where highly energetic daily fire events intersected affluent, populated areas. Economic disasters increased sharply from 2015 onward, with 43% of the 200 most damaging events occurring in the last decade. Disasters coincided with increasingly extreme climatic conditions, highlighting the urgent need to adapt to a more fire-prone world.