Fire Weather and Drought: Recent Developments and Future Perspectives

Dear Colleagues,

Fire weather and drought are two interlinked phenomena that have profound implications for ecosystems, human activities, and economies. Both are exacerbated by the ongoing changes in meteorological and climatological conditions due to anthropogenic warming, such as rising air temperatures, shifting precipitation patterns, and increasing evaporative demand. These changes intensify the frequency, severity, and spatial extent of droughts, which, in turn, create conducive conditions for wildfires. Additionally, land cover and land use changes further influence the fire–drought nexus by altering water and energy balances.

Climate change amplifies these risks, leading to prolonged drought periods and more extreme fire weather conditions, which are increasingly associated with devastating compound events. Such events not only threaten natural and managed ecosystems but also impose significant economic and societal costs, particularly in regions already vulnerable to water scarcity and wildfire risks.

This Special Issue aims to advance our understanding of fire weather, drought processes, and their interactions. We invite contributions that explore innovative approaches to monitoring, modeling, and predicting these phenomena and their impacts on water resources, ecosystems, and human communities. The Special Issue seeks to address key topics, including the influence of anthropogenic warming and natural variability, trends in meteorological factors and compound extreme events, the development of effective risk management strategies, etc.

In particular, submissions are encouraged on the following themes:

• Indicators and diagnostics of fire weather, drought, and related compound extreme events;
• Modern techniques for monitoring meteorological and hydrological conditions (e.g., satellite-based methods);
• Trends in atmospheric circulation and their links to fire–drought dynamics;
• Socioeconomic and ecological impacts of fire weather and drought;
• Future projections of fire weather and drought under various climate scenarios.

We hope this Special Issue will provide a platform for interdisciplinary collaboration and inspire actionable solutions to address the growing challenges posed by fire weather and drought in a warming world.

Dr. Yizhou Zhuang
Prof. Dr. Rong Fu
Guest Editors

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