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Fire plays a key role in Earth system processes. Wildfires influence the carbon cycle and the nutrient balance of our planet, and may even play a role in regulating the oxygen content of our atmosphere. The evolutionary history of plants has been intimately tied to fire and this in part explains the distribution of our ecosystems and their ability to withstand the effects of natural fires today. Fire Phenomena and the Earth System brings together the various subdisciplines within fire science to provide a synthesis of our understanding of the role of wildfire in the Earth system.

Includes index.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

An introduction to combustion in organic materials -- Smouldering fires in natural fuels -- Experimental understanding of wildland fires -- Wildland fire behaviour and danger ratings -- Satellite remote sensing of wildfires -- Understanding the ecological impacts of fires -- Plant adaptations to fire an evolutionary perspective -- Fire and the land surface -- Black carbon in soils and sediments -- Identifying past fire events -- A 21,000 year history of fire -- A 450 million year history of fire -- The atmospheric impact of wildfires -- Experiments on atmospheric oxygen and fire -- Fire feedbacks on atmospheric oxygen -- Biochar and carbon sequestration.

Environmental Science