Category: Flaming Topics

Term 1 Week 1

Although fires are natural in Australia, they’re now occurring at an unprecedented intensity. Already Over 20% of Australia’s forests have burned during the bushfires. With 25 million people in Australia, no one really knows the real cause and there’s always someone or something we need to blame. Who?

As some would know, Scott Morrison vanished from his post as the prime minister to voyage away to Hawaii whistle Australia was in a hot crisis. The reason for these unsupervised fires is because Scott Morrison needs to have family time, he pins his holiday decision on his family. (If you want an apology, it’s down below but only if it makes you sleep better). He has also admitted to climate change being the root for the fires, what do you think?

“I deeply regret any offence caused to any of the many Australians affected by the terrible bushfires by my taking leave with family at this time,”

Scott Morrison, the prime minister of Australia

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If Climate change was a person, they’d be hated so much if the origin of the fire was due to climate. Climate helps fires grow more persistent and more fierce and the more severe weather scheme and higher temperatures build up, the risk of bushfires and permit them to spread faster and wider. We augment climate change by ignoring it so you can help by doing the little things.

“We find it very difficult in general to attribute climate change impacts to a specific event, particularly while the event is running,”

Dr Richard Thornton, chief executive of the Bushfires & Natural Hazards Cooperative Research Centre.

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Arson is a possibility but it could be fake news that is being spread by climate change deniers in Australia. BUT note that some were charged for deliberately lighting a fire during the current fire but they aren’t the beginning for this ongoing burst of flames.

“I can confidently say the majority of the larger fires we have been dealing with have been a result of fires coming out of remote areas as a result of dry lightning storms.”

A New South Wales Rural Fire Service representative

“There is currently no intelligence to indicate that the fires in East Gippsland and the North-East [the worst fires in the state] have been caused by arson or any suspicious behaviour.”

Police in Victoria state

Arsonists aren’t responsible for many this season. Only about 1 percent of the land burnt in NSW this bushfire season can be officially attributed to arson, and it is even less in Victoria

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Term 1 Week 2

The flames of Australia have grown larger than ever and with the technology we have, we may be able to enhance our firefighting ways.

1. Virtual reality and haptic technology that can help train firefighters

When the firefighters act to the catastrophe, chemicals spent to sodden the fires are not fit for the environment. It just happens that we have one Australian entrepreneur planning a system that practices VR. It can be for fun and games but more importantly as an exercise and lesson in virtual reality to train the firefighters for the Australian roast. This idea guarantees firemen a worthwhile and important experience, also ditching the need to release unpleasant chemicals.

2. Keeping firefighters safe from truck burn overs

That’s not all, we have more equipment and strategies to help keep firefighters safe. Technology may be helpful but there are problems elsewhere. Being trapped in a truck caught on flames; overwhelming, right? The CSIRO have set themselves on an adventure to discover a solution, by testing water sprays and shields for the sake of decreasing radiation risk, temperature and toxic gases.

3. Watering Drones

Another technology we could put to use is the sound blasting fire extinguisher. Drones are mechanical pressure waves that cause vibrations, since sound waves have the potential to manipulate both burning material and the oxygen that surrounds it, Drones could be used to separate the two, the fire would be starved of oxygen.

Drones don’t completely cool the flames, so there is a chance the fire could catch again when the sound is switched off. This doesn’t necessarily mean drones are useless. Drones can be applied to help detect damaged buildings and hotspots.

4. Satellites and space cameras

Have you hear of DESIS, or DLR? If not, it’s us humans using the resources we have to have this incredible technology which can depict the land surface, oceans and atmosphere with great accuracy and can absolutely be applied to supervise any bushfires from orbit. With a map of information sent to firefighters as the bonus keypoint.

5. Using sound waves to extinguish blazes

In 2015, Seth Robertson and Viet Tran (engineering students) at George Mason University in the US have come up with a way to fight fire without water or chemicals!?

“The principle behind the extinguisher is simple: as they are mechanical pressure waves that cause vibrations in the medium in which they travel, sound waves have the potential to manipulate both burning material and the oxygen that surrounds it. If the sound could be used to separate the two, the fire would be starved of oxygen and, accordingly, would be snuffed out.”

Physics World

Like a fire extinguisher equipped with sound waves; their prototype uses low-frequency sound waves. It weighs around 9 kg. Similar to the drone, the technology isn’t 100% effective. There’s a likely chance that the fire will return when the sound is turned off. That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s useless but it can still be of assistance in the firefighting department, just not at popular choice.

6. The V.F.D also known as the Volunteer Fire Department

There you have it, if you have any questions or compliments, the box is down below.