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The impact of a 2 X CO2 climate on lightning-caused firesFuture climate change could have significant repercussions for lightning-caused wildfires. Two empirical fire models are presented relating the frequency of lightning fires and the area burned by these fires to the effective precipitation and the frequency of thunderstorm activity. One model deals with the seasonal variations in lightning fires, while the second model deals with the interannual variations of lightning fires. These fire models are then used with the Goddard Institute for Space Studies General Circulation Model to investigate possible changes in fire frequency and area burned in a 2 X CO2 climate. In the United States, the annual mean number of lightning fires increases by 44%, while the area burned increases by 78%. On a global scale, the largest increase in lightning fires can be expected in untouched tropical ecosystems where few natural fires occur today.
Document ID
19950033755
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Price, Colin
(NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY United States)
Rind, David
(NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY United States)
Date Acquired
August 16, 2013
Publication Date
October 1, 1994
Publication Information
Publication: Journal of Climate
Volume: 7
Issue: 10
ISSN: 0894-8755
Subject Category
Meteorology And Climatology
Accession Number
95A65354
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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