Tree Rings Speak to California's Past

I found an article that reveals that scientists can determine the occurrence of past events such as drought or wildfire by studying the rings of tree trunks. This has led to the compilation of a California climate record that spans thousands of years, thanks to the giant sequoia trees of western Sierra Nevada, which can live up to 3,000 years. A 3,000-year record from 52 of the world's oldest trees reveals that California's western Sierra Nevada was droughty and often fiery from 800 to 1300, according to a new study led by University of Arizona researchers. Knowing how giant sequoia trees responded to a 500-year warm spell in the past is important because scientists predict that climate change will probably subject the trees to such a warm, dry environment again, said Swetnam, a UA professor of dendrochronology and director of UA's Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research. I think that this article is very interesting and informative because using the information from the rings of tree trunks, scientists are now able to project the likelihood of forest fires in the future. This knowledge can help to protect our national forests and will also be helpful in evacuating people from forest fire prone areas when necessary.

http://uanews.org/node/30720