Learn About SW Climate:
Overview of Fire Research

Interdisciplinary research on climate, ecology and human society shows that the interactions between these various elements shape the biological landscape of the Southwest and the occurrence of fire, a keystone process in the ecology of the Southwest. The following pages provide a brief review of key methods, concepts and processes in Southwest fire research.

CLIMAS' new fire initiative fosters research on the nature, causes, and consequences of climate change and variability on fire in the Southwestern United States. Familiarity with the integral processes affecting fire, along with improved communication between scientists and land managers, will help climatologists, fire and land-use managers in efforts to improve climate forecasting for fire management in the region.

	Fire History Analysis Using Tree Rings Highlights the methods used by tree-ring scientists (dendrochronologists) to examine the history of fire occurrence in the Southwest over the course of the last 500 years.
	Connection with Climate Presents recent research on the likely climatic causes of fire occurrence on short and long time scales.
	Ecological Effects A discussion of natural fire occurrence, the effects of fire suppression on forest ecology and feedbacks of fire suppression on fire intensity.
	Effects of Grazing A discussion of how fire frequency has been affected by the introduction of grazing to southwestern forests and grasslands.
	Recent History A brief look at recent trends and effects of climate changes since the 1950s on fire regimes in the Southwest.