Australia typically has wildfires in its summer months, but this year’s fire season began early—a combination of extreme heat and a severe drought, scientists say. As with California , the trend is moving toward bigger, faster-moving and more destructive wildfires, due in part to climate change. “The things that produce high fire danger—that is high temperatures, the drought factor and so on—are literally becoming more frequent with climate change,” said Nigel Tapper, a climate scientist and professor at Monash University in Melbourne. “There’s virtually nowhere that isn’t dry at the moment.” Fire officials don’t expect significant rain until late January at the earliest, and they warned about 77,000 square miles—an area the size of Nebraska—was at risk of burning in New South Wales state alone. Already, more than 11,500 square miles have burned in the state, an area larger than Massachusetts. As of Sunday morning, more than 105 fires […]