What set Siberia ablaze?

Description Shifting air currents and early snowmelt drove extreme Arctic fires from 2019 to 2021 Extreme wildfires are being reported worldwide, contributing to global warming by emitting substantial amounts of carbon dioxide, destabilizing ecosystems, and causing major socioeconomical damage. Boreal forests and Arctic tundra have experienced devastating fires in recent summers. From 2019 to 2021, more than 90% of these fires occurred in central and eastern Siberia. On page 1005 of this issue, Scholten et al. (1) report the underlying causes of these events. The main drivers include a northward shift of a major air current (the Arctic front jet stream), early snowmelt, and frequent lightning strikes. These conditions have led to a migration of fires that threaten even the northernmost part of the land, the Arctic coast.