Clouds
noun
/kloud/
1. A visible mass of condensed water vapor floating in the atmosphere, typically high above the ground.
2. An indistinct or billowing mass, especially of smoke or dust.
3. A vague patch of color in or on a liquid or transparent surface.
Since the early 20th century, the “militarization of fire” (by which we mean the prioritization of fire fighting over more holistic and sustainable land management solutions) has resulted in technologies and infrastructures on par with some smaller countries across the globe. Central to this armory are retrofitted Boeing 747 airplanes, carrying thousands of gallons of either water or fire retardant deployed during wildfire events. When dropped, bursts of clouds formulate over the landscape, falling to cover unignited vegetation. The retardant, comprised of a mix of water and borates (fertilizers) sticks to ground surfaces and plant material, providing a protective layer that delays ignition. In addition, these retardants can cool the material down while also releasing water vapor and carbon dioxide which assists in weakening, and potentially even extinguishing, flames.
With wind velocities ever increasing in Southern California due to excessive differentials between ground temperatures (due to climate change), retardants cannot effectively mitigate wind driven fires, due to the material being blown away and because the rigid winged aircraft used to disperse it cannot fly within extreme wind conditions. As a result, mountainous terrains, and its residents, are subject to increased danger due to inaccessibility.
The smoke plume from the Woolsey Fire (right) canceled out the legislated automobile emissions within the City of Los Angeles. In fact, smoke from the 2018 wildfires equated to 68M tons of carbon dioxide, equivalent to the carbon emissions created in a year to supply electricity to the entire state of California. These are the unseen effects of wildfires in relation to climate change, setting back gains through sustainable technology and legislation with a single event. In addition, these plumes enter the jet stream, reducing air quality and impacting those with respiratory illness across the United States, and the globe.
Fires create clouds. The Pyrocumulus Flammagenitus (or pyrocumulonimbus) cloud, or fire cloud, form naturally above fires, however because the presence of many smoke particles tends to inhibit the formation of rain, water droplets are prevented from forming into raindrops large enough to fall. The pyrocumulus cloud can either help or hinder a fire. Occasionally, the moisture from the air condenses in the cloud and then falls as rain, extinguishing the fire, and there are been numerous examples where a large firestorm has been extinguished by the pyrocumuluspyrocumulus clouds it created. However, if the fire is large enough, then the cloud may continue to grow, and become Cumulonimbus Flammagenitus, which are extremely unstable formations that, in turn, produce lightning storms that ironically increase the chance of creating other fires.
The San Gabriel Mountains are one of the most active mountain ranges in the world. Constantly moving, shedding, shifting, and spalling, they appear to be pushing back on the encroaching city. The movement transforms the ground to mist, stitching the earth with the sky. Dust thickens the atmosphere on a continual basis, the result of an arid climate with little to no precipitation on a yearly basis. These dust clouds, in combination with emissions, pollute the air, effecting the adjacent communities, exacerbating conditions for those with respiratory problems such as asthma, bronchitis and the like. While the climatic activity in Southern California propels forward in a consistently recurring pattern, these formations remind Angelenos of the continual geologic vibrations that characterize this region of the United Sates.
The monitoring and conditioning of the weather is critical in helping to forecast, and mitigate against, wildfires. Precipitous drops in humidity usually foreshadow wildfire events. For example, prior to the start of the Woolsey Fire, the humidity level across the Western San Fernando Valley, from Simi Valley to Agoura Hills, dropped to 0% within an hour. Such a drastic change, coupled with hillsides dense with dried vegetal fuel, exacerbated by the lack of rainfall, and propelled by intense Santa Ana Winds, created a perfect storm for the devastating wildfire that followed. Monitoring humidity levels on a continual basis is one way to better anticipate the formation of optimum conditions for fire.
SPECULATIONS
Urban Humidifiers
To counteract the sudden drop in humidity as a result of the oncoming Santa Ana winds, a dense network of weather monitors is extended across the Los Angeles basin. Dispensed by industrial-scale misting cannons using recycled grey and black water from the San Fernando Valley and San Gabriel Valley, they create a dense wet environment to help combat wildfires and arid climate conditions by “humidifying” the environment. Acting as urban fog machines, they simulate the marine layer by cooling the atmosphere and providing additional moisture to soil and vegetation.
Pink Rain
As electrical infrastructure expands across wildland–urban interface, susceptible to high winds, it exponentially increases the risk of transformer or transmission line failure. These incidents occur in remote areas, typically too far from developed areas to allow for quick notification and response by fire departments. To combat this, fire retardant cannisters, equipped with heat sensors, or sensors triggered by a failure in the electrical line, propel pink clouds to cover adjacent vegetation and mitigate the potential for ignition. In turn, they trigger alarms to the fire department who then tracks them using a GIS marker. Airborne patrols can spot the pink spray on the ground to locate the point of failure and origin of any wildfire event.