Date of Award

5-2022

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Mathematical Sciences

Committee Chair/Advisor

Whitney Huang

Committee Member

Brook Russell

Committee Member

Shyam Ranganathan

Abstract

Wildfires are extreme weather events that exist at the interface of atmospheric, ecological, and human processes. Ongoing anthropogenic climate change is expected to impact the distribution, frequency, and behavior of wildfires on a grand scale, however the exact nature of this change remains shrouded in a great deal of uncertainty. This study takes a statistical approach to the question over the fire-prone Northern California region of the western United states. Climate model projections are analyzed to investigate changes in a major driver of fire weather in the region. The relationship between wildfire severity and climate factors is then explored separately, utilizing a historical data set of California wildfires and climate reanalysis data to analyze the impact of environmental factors on the burned area associated with historical wildfires.

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