When lightning sparked a big fire in the tundra of Alaska’s Arctic North Slope nine years ago, scientists were stunned. The Anaktuvuk River fire grew to more than 400 square miles and burned for months. It was bigger than the cumulative total of all prior North Slope tundra fires dating back to the 1950s. If Alaska’s warming trend continues, such fires will no longer be so extraordinary, according to a new analysis led by University of Montana researchers.
How tundra wildfires could create an unstoppable cycle
