Unfold
Unfold
UC Davis
The Fires That Changed Fire Science
16 minutes Posted May 26, 2026 at 3:55 pm.
Introduction: The Trees of Altadena
Mapping the Burned Zones
What Urban Fires Leave in the Air
Riding in a Mobile Air Quality Lab
Hexavalent Chromium: A Hidden Danger
The Cleanup and What Came With It
The Science of Scorched Trees
0:00
16:16
Download MP3
Show notes
As another wildfire season begins, Unfold heads into the burn zones of last year’s fires in Los Angeles County. UC Davis and University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources scientists are learning what the fires left behind — both on the ground and in the air. You’ll hear about one Altadena fire survivor’s efforts to save his oak trees and about a highly toxic carcinogen detected in the air over millions of people. Researchers are building a new kind of fire science, because the fires are changing and science is racing to keep up.
In this episode:
Alessandro Ossola, associate professor, UC Davis Department of Plant Sciences
Chris Shogren, environmental horticulture advisor, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources
Michael Kleeman, professor, UC Davis Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Read an in-depth In Focus story on what scientists are learning from the fires in Altadena and the Palisades.