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Soil moisture end user listening session

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Do you use (or *wish* you could use) soil moisture data or maps to support your decision making, advising, or other work activities? Do you want to share your opinions on which soil moisture datasets, maps, and tools are needed to better inform drought, flood, or other natural resource issues?

In July, the National Coordinated Soil Moisture Monitoring Network is hosting two listening sessions for soil moisture end users to share their thoughts, wish lists, and out-of-the-box ideas about what types of soil moisture products would best serve them. Target participants include federal, regional, and state program staff; state climatologists; water resource managers; extension agents; and any others who are interested in products derived from soil moisture data, whether it be from in situ mesonets, modeling outputs, and/or satellite retrievals.

Participants can choose either this session (July 13) or an identical session on July 22, both at 1 – 3 p.m. ET. Please register by Wednesday, July 7.

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PNW Drought Early Warning System- June drought and climate outlook

Webinar recording.

The Pacific Northwest Drought Early Warning System (PNW DEWS) Drought & Climate Outlook Webinar is part of a series of regular drought and climate outlook webinars designed to provide stakeholders and other interested parties in the region with timely information on current drought status and impacts, as well as a preview of current and developing climatic events (i.e. El Niño and La Niña).

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The timeline of climate, weather and fire

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Climatology Research Professor Tim Brown, also director of the Western Regional Climate Center, will discuss how weather and climate influence fire in Nevada.

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Warm, dry conditions inhibit aspen growth, but tree growth and size predict mortality risk in the southwestern US

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Widespread, rapid aspen (Populus tremuloides) mortality since the beginning of the 21st century, sometimes called sudden aspen decline (SAD), has been documented in many locations across North America, but it has been particularly pronounced in the southwestern U.S. We investigated the relationship between aspen growth, mortality, and climate across three forest types in northern Arizona using crossdated tree-ring samples from 126 live and 132 dead aspen. Aspen growth was negatively correlated with warm temperatures and positively associated with higher precipitation. Using survival analysis techniques to investigate the links between aspen mortality, tree traits, and climatic conditions, we found that tree traits played a larger role in mortality risk than climate factors. Trees with larger diameters, older trees, and trees with faster growth rates over the past 50 years had a reduced risk of mortality. Management actions aimed at maintaining the most vigorous, fastest growing aspen in the region could help mitigate the impacts of a warmer, drier future.

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Ecological drought: Drought, wildfire, and recovery

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Drought can exacerbate wildfire frequency, intensity, and severity. This webinar explores wildfire management approaches based on ecological principles, including those that embed traditional ecological knowledge.

Presenters: Dr. Jeremy Littell, Research Ecologist, Alaska Climate Adaptation Science Center, USGS
Bill Tripp, Deputy Director of Eco-Cultural Revitalization, Department of Natural Resources, Karuk Tribe

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Ecological drought: Planning for resilience

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This webinar focuses on planning, restoration, and recovery actions that strengthen ecosystem resilience, mitigate the impacts of natural disasters, and realize co-benefits.

Presenters: Dr. Jennifer Cartwright, Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, USGS
Rachel M. Gregg, Senior Scientist, EcoAdapt
Hannah Panci, Climate Change Scientist and Robert Croll, Climate Change Program Coordinator, Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission

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Ecological drought: An introduction

Webinar recording.

Introducing ecological drought as a scientific concept distinct from other definitions of drought, this webinar explores recent research on the topic, including transformational drought impacts and ecological tipping points.

Presenters: Dr. Shelley Crausbay, Senior Scientist, Conservation Science Partners; Dr. Amanda Cravens, Research Social Scientist, USGS

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Dramatic declines in snowpack in the western US

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This report found that records across the western US now show declines, of which 33% are significant (vs. 5% expected by chance) and 2% are significant and positive (vs. 5% expected by chance). Declining trends are observed across all months, states, and climates, but are largest in spring, in the Pacific states, and in locations with mild winter climate.

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Sensitivity of US wildfire occurrence to pre-season soil moisture conditions across ecosystems

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This study found that cross-validated results generally indicate a higher occurrence of smaller fires when months preceding fire season are wet, while larger fires are more frequent when soils are dry. This is consistent with the concept of increased fuel accumulation under wet conditions in the pre-season. These results demonstrate the fundamental strength of the relationship between soil moisture and fire activity at long lead-times and are indicative of that relationship’s utility for the future development of national-scale predictive capability.

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Severe fire weather potential mapping system

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A mobile-friendly, current, interactive fire risk map.

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