It might feel like the depths of winter, but Australian fire services are preparing for an early start to the bushfire season.
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| Much of the Sydney basin is dangerously primed for major bushfires. |
Sydney has been covered with smoke from hazard-reduction burns, and the New South Wales Rural Fire Service has forecast a "horrific" season.
Predicting the severity of a bushfire season isn't easy, and — much like the near-annual announcements of the "worst flu season on record" — repeated warnings can diminish their urgency.
However, new modelling that combines Bureau of Meteorology data with NASA satellite imaging has found record-setting July warmth and low rainfall have created conditions very similar to 2013, when highly destructive bushfires burned across NSW and Victoria.
Crucially, this research has found we're approaching a crucial dryness threshold, past which fires are historically far more dangerous.
Read the opinion piece on ABC News - “With more dry fuel than 2013, Sydney is facing a severe and early fire season.”
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