Stanes Tell Secrets o Auncient Wildfires

Scientists in Scotland hae unkivert a grundbrakkin technique tae analyse charcoal, sheddin licht on wildfires that brunt the Yird millions o year syne. This innovative method, developed bi geoscientists fae the University o Aiberdeen an fire engineers fae the University o Edinburgh, promises tae braiden oor unnerstaundin o wildfires durin baith past an present climate shifts.

The research, published in the journal Scientific Reports, reveals that this technique can trace wildfire behaviour back tae the earliest evidence o fire, datin back 420 million year. Wi the alarm clockin rise in wildfire activity globally, pairticularly in vulnerable weetland ecosystems, this new insicht is richt on time. Recent wildfires in California, that ravaged ower 18,000 hames, pynt oot the growin intensity an duration o fire seasons, a trend linked tae climate chynge. Unnerstaundin the history o wildfires is crucial, as they hae shaped ecosystems throuoot geological history, especially durin periods o extreme climate chynge.

The team yaised advanced laser technology, kent as Raman spectroscopy, tae analyse charcoals created in controlled wildfire experiments. This merks the first time researchers hae calculated wildfire energy release fae charcoal chemistry, allooin for a deeper unnerstaundin o naitural fuel mixes an wildfire reconstructions ower ages.

Dr. Thomas Theurer fae the University o Aiberdeen stated, “We can study chynges in auncient plant life, climate, an fire preserved in rock, helpin us grasp the drivers o intense fire activity in the past.” His colleague, Dr. Dmitri Mauquoy, emphasised that traditional methods o estimatin auncient fire temperatures micht no provide a complete picture. “Oor method quantifies energy release fae wildfires yaisin charcoal remains, makin it a non-destructive an universal approach.”

This new method gies insichts intae hoo past fire activity has evolved wi climate chynge, independent o human influence. Professor Rory Hadden fae the University o Edinburgh noted the importance o this research in predictin future fire activity an its potential impacts on global ecosystems an communities.

As charcoal is a common by-product o fire, the possibilities for applyin this method extend ayont wildfire studies. It cuid benefit fields sic as archaeology, forensic investigations, an fire safety science, appenin new avenues for unnerstaundin fire’s role in oor warld.