California Wildfires: Why does California experience some of the largest wildfires in the country?

If you are a resident of California, do you see smoke around at this time of year (June to September)? Is your mobile warning you of heat wave or bad weather conditions? You guessed it right, it is because of the California wildfires. 

According to National Interagency Fire Center, there were 35,630 country-wide fires from 1/1/20-8/14/20 in 2020 and there have been 40,263 fires reported 1/1/21-8/14/21 with a significant amount of increase in number of fires every year. Currently, there are 9 active California fires, not including the individual fires in the complexes. According to Cal Fire, among the top 20 largest California wildfires, 7 wildfires occurred in 2020 and 2021.

Why does California experience some of the largest wildfires in the country?

This was a big question in 2020 when California experienced some largest fires in the history, including AUGUST COMPLEX (in Mendocino, Humboldt, Trinity, Tehama, Glenn, Lake, & Colusa counties),  LIGHTNING COMPLEX in (Stanislaus, Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa, & San Joaquin counties),  CREEK FIRE in (Fresno & Madera), along with the others based on Cal Fire data. 

The major possible reason is Climate Change. California gets most of its rainfall in the fall and winter season and the summers are very dry accompanied by strong winds. With global climate change, there is further increase in temperature, creating a situation similar to adding salt to the wounds. The powerful winds makes the matter worse due to the fanning effect of winds on the fire. Wind also has a drying effect, taking away all the moisture with it, making it worse for plants who are already prone to drying conditions due to hot weather and lack of rainfall. The drying of vegetation, along with combined effect of hot summer and lack of rainfall contribute to the wildfires. 

According to U.S. Department of Interior, only 10% of wildfires are caused by lightning or lava and remaining 90% of the fires result from human activities such as campfires left unattended, the burning of debris, downed power lines, negligently discarded cigarettes and intentional acts of arson.

Current California Wildfires:

Currently based on data provided by National Interagency Fire Center, there are 9 active fires in California, a few well-contained while others still spreading at faster rates. Dixie fire, which is one of the largest fires in the country, is 31% contained and has spread across 537,77 acres.  

 What do you think happened with the California fires?

Why is California becoming a frequent wildfire hotspot recently?

Its vegetation then spends much of the summer slowly drying out because of a lack of rainfall and warmer temperatures. That vegetation then serves as kindling for fires. But while California's climate has always been fire-prone, the link between climate change and bigger fires is inextricable.

More than 400,000 acres have been burned in Northern and Central California, with many of the fires set off by nearly 11,000 lightning strikes.

California, like much of the West, gets most of its moisture in the fall and winter. Its vegetation then spends much of the summer slowly drying out because of a lack of rainfall and warmer temperatures. That vegetation then serves as kindling for.