UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The 2019-20 Australian bushfire season saw unprecedented fire activity that burned more than 46 million acres and destroyed more than 9,000 buildings. The flames and the excessive smoke that they caused were responsible for hundreds of deaths and darkened much of the continent.
David Bowman, professor of pyrogeography and fire science at the University of Tasmania, will deliver a talk titled "Viewing the 2019-2020 Australian bushfire crisis through a pyrogeographic lens" at 4 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 4. The talk, which is free and open to the public, will take place via Zoom.
Bowman’s talk is part of the fall 2021 EESI EarthTalks series, “Fire in the Earth System.” The series addresses humanity’s long relationship with fire, how humans and climate create conditions conducive to megafires, and how policymakers and land managers can address the fire problem. For more information about the fall 2021 series, visit the EarthTalks webpage.
The fall 2021 EESI EarthTalks series is supported by Penn State’s Earth and Environmental Systems Institute.