Amazon Rainforest Burned by Global Warming: Forest Fires and Drought on the Rise

The Amazon rainforest may be in trouble. Scientists have created future simulations of the climate in these biodiverse forests and have found that not only will there be a longer dry season, but this dry season will lead to more droughts and fires. This could mean devastating consequences for an area already struggling from climate change.

Over the course of eight years, the researchers repeatedly burned 50-hectare forest plots in the southeast Amazonia. This allowed them to learn how fire frequency and weather conditions affected tree deaths. They found that while the forest didn't burn much in average years, it burned extensively in drought years. Because drought is supposed to increase in the future, it's very possible that the Amazon rainforest may see more tree die-offs.

There's evidence in the past to support this, too. The researchers used NASA satellite data to get a look at past fires. They found that in 2007, fires in southeast Amazonia burned 10 times more forest than in an average climate year. The area was equivalent to about a million soccer fields.

"Agriculture has created smaller forest fragments, which exposes forest edges to the hotter, dryer conditions in the surrounding landscape and makes them vulnerable to escaped fires," said Marcia Macedo, one of the researchers, in a news release. "These fragmented forests are more likely to be invaded by flammable grasses, which further increase the likelihood and intensity of future fires."

The findings reveal that not only will the Amazon suffer from climate change, but that it's already suffering from climate change. Fires are degrading large areas of the forest, and extreme weather events, such as droughts, are causing trees to die and changing the Amazon's landscape.

"None of the models used to evaluate future Amazon forest health include fire, so most predictions grossly underestimate the amount of tree death and overestimate overall forest health," said Michael Coe, one of the researchers, in a news release.

The findings are important for future efforts to help mitigate the impacts of drought and climate change. By taking action, it's possible to lower the amount of tree death in the Amazon rainforest, which is crucial for preserving biodiversity and habitat.

The findings are published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.