The impact of el niño on fire outbreaks and human thermal discomfort in Brazil in the period between summer of 2014/2015 until the autumn of 2016

Abstract

El Niño influences temperature and precipitation regimes in Brazil, causing periods of drought and excessive rainfall in some regions. In dry periods, the outbreaks of natural burning in Brazil tend to increase mainly in the Midwest and Northeast. Periods of drought and high temperatures, besides favoring conditions for natural fires, can also cause thermal discomfort in the population. In this context, the objective was to analyze the impacts caused by El Niño, between the summer of 2014/2015 and autumn of 2016, on the occurrence of fires and thermal discomfort of the population in Brazil. The results showed that the spring season of 2015 was the driest and with low relative humidity, mainly in the North, Northeast, Midwest and Southeast regions, which resulted in a greater heat discomfort due to the heat and the greater number of fire in Brazil, with an average (1998 to 2014) is 34,376 outbreaks and recorded 49,849 outbreaks during the spring of 2015, during 2015/2016 El Niño.