Hot, dry Santa Anas a particular threat in some Southern California areas
Professor Alex Hall's new study tracking wind patterns and wildfire flare-ups is profiled in the LA Times.
Researchers have developed the first high-resolution map of Santa Ana wind events, showing that the hot, dry blasts don't sweep uniformly across the Southland and that the danger of large, wind-whipped wildfires is therefore greater in some parts of the region than others.
Alex Hall, a UCLA associate professor of atmospheric and oceanic sciences, said the findings underscore the importance of weather, particularly wind speed, temperature and humidity, in the growth of monster blazes. "Wildfires are started all over the landscape, mostly by people. The ones that survive and develop into large fires [do so] because of the meteorology. The fact that the study really clinches that is significant," he stated.
To read the full article by Bettina Boxall click here.
Alex Hall is Faculty Director of the Institute of the Environment Center for Climate Change Solutions.
Published: Friday, April 02, 2010
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