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Lightning and Wildfires
August 16, 2021 @ 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Free
A Striking August: Lightning and Wildfires with Chris Giesige
Monday, August 16, 6-7pm
In August 2020, Northern California was ignited by a series of 650 wildfires spurred by dry lightning from rare, massive summer thunderstorms. Today, all of California is experiencing drought conditions and fire season is well underway.
Join the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History on the one year anniversary of the lightning storms for an online lecture with wildfire researcher and lightning scientist Chris Giesige. We will explore the weather and climate conditions that made the August 2020 lightning events possible as well as take a peek at what the future may hold for wildfires in California. Chris will share how we classify the weather and atmospheric conditions that create fire weather and behavior, why those conditions aided the events of last August, and explore wildfire in California more generally.
Register for zoom link: https://www.santacruzmuseum.org/8-16-a-striking-august-lightning-and-wildfires-with-chris-giesige/
About the Speaker
Chris Giesige has studied fire science and conducted lightning research for over a decade. His research is focused on wildfires and seasonal and short term lightning development during the summer through fall months. Through the WestCats Group, he and his team are currently working on developing a new sensor network for better lightning forecasting for wildfire events.
This program is part of the series CZU AND YOU: Resources for Recovery, Preparedness, and Ecological Understanding from the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History and Santa Cruz Public Libraries | August 2021
