Devastating wildfires have become far too routine in the American West. Yet scientists lack the insights and tools needed to accurately predict under what conditions and to what extent future wildfires will occur, or how wildfires might impact water and air. They cannot yet forecast how wildfires might change as infrastructure expands with population growth, and forests evolve with climate change.

At Berkeley Lab we develop insights and technology to improve how well we respond to the wildfires of today and tomorrow, and are working to better predict wildfires and evaluate how they impact water and air quality and entire ecosystems.