Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

Lightning-ignited wildfires: thunderstorms and extreme events

Project description

The threat of lightning-ignited wildfires

Around the world, wildfires sparked by lightning strikes wreak havoc in remote and mountainous regions. Dry lightning, which occurs without substantial rainfall, remains a mysterious catalyst, with its frequency and impact poorly understood. As climate change escalates, there is a greater threat of extreme wildfire events, underscoring the urgency for solutions. Supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) programme, the FIRESKY project will study lightning-ignited wildfires and reinforce our defences against their devastating consequences. Through detailed data collection and analysis, it promises to refine fire forecasting and detection systems, while fostering public awareness and climate resilience. With wildfires intensifying, FIRESKY’s insights offer hope in our battle against nature’s fiery fury.

Objective

Lightning is the most frequent natural ignition source of wildfires. Lightning-ignited wildfires (LIWs) are a significant part of the fire regime in remote and mountainous regions across the world, as well as a major component of wildfires crises in the USA, Canada, Siberia, southern Europe, and Australia, among other regions. Dry lightning (lightning that occurs without a considerable amount of rain) are mentioned as one of the main factors driving LIWs. However, it is unclear how frequently dry lightning ignite fires, and whether dry lightning are associated to certain patters (e.g. shorter and smaller storms) and the lifecycle of thunderstorms (e.g. located at the edge and during the final stage). On the other hand, the projected increase in lightning, along with global-scale processes (climate and land use changes), suggest that extreme wildfire events caused by lightning are likely to occur more frequently. FIRESKY aims to enhance the understanding of LIWs to improve preparedness for changing wildfire regimes. To this end, FIRESKY will first characterize the thunderstorms causing LIWs, and second identify extreme LIWs and the conditions that promote them. The research project will find the specific lightning strikes and thunderstorms responsible for LIWs, and a database of extreme LIWs will be created. In summary, FIRESKY will help understand the role of thunderstorms in fire ignitions, and how these ignitions interact with other factors to become extreme wildfires. This knowledge can be incorporated into fire forecasting and detection systems. In addition, FIRESKY increases public awareness about natural and extreme wildfires, and contributes to adaptation to climate change by improving our preparedness to extreme events as part of an integrated fire management approach.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

You need to log in or register to use this function

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2023-PF-01

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

STICHTING VU
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 203 464,32
Address
DE BOELELAAN 1105
1081 HV Amsterdam
Netherlands

See on map

Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

No data

Partners (2)

My booklet 0 0