Heatwaves enable wildfire activity in the western United States

While overall impacts of heatwaves have been extensively studied, the connection between heatwaves and wildfire activity remains relatively underexplored. We analyze links between heatwaves and both wildfire occurrence and growth across the western United States (WUS) and find that 42% of burned area during 2001–2024 occurred during and immediately following heatwaves. Heatwaves facilitate significant increases in daily burned area through meteorological and fuel flammability conditions that promote new ignitions and exacerbate ongoing fire activity, with effects persisting post-heatwave in most regions. In addition, heatwaves co-occur with increased cloud-to-ground lightning that can potentially increase ignitions. Last, we observe a 2.5-fold increase in burned area in WUS forests since 2001, with ~64% of this increase coinciding with heatwaves, but without corresponding increases in nonforests. The growing influence of heatwaves in shaping burned area in WUS forests has important implications for fire management and public health and can improve predictions of wildfire risk. Heatwaves are associated with a disproportionate share of wildfire activity and trends in the western US in recent decades.