Papers Dispute the Existence of Wildfires with Start of Younger Dryas 7FEB09

Two papers, both of which dispute the occurrence of wildfires associated with a hypothetical impact event at the start of the Younger Dryas, have been recently published.

They are:
1. Marlon, J. R., P. J. Bartlein, M. K. Walsh, S. P. Harrison, K. J. Brown, M. E. Edwards, P. E. Higuera, M. J. Power, R. S. Anderson, C. Briles, A. Brunelle, C. Carcaillet, M. Daniels, F. S. Hu, M. Lavoie, C. Long, T. Minckley, P. J. H. Richard, A. C. Scott, D. S. Shafer, W. Tinner, C. E. Umbanhowar, Jr., and C. Whitlock, 2009,
Wildfire responses to abrupt climate change in North America.
Proceedings for the National Academy of Science.
Published online before print February 3, 2009, doi: 10.1073/pnas.0808212106
Abstract at:
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2009/02/03/0808212106.abstract

and

2. van der Hammen, T. and B. van Geel, 2008,
Charcoal in soils of the Allerød-Younger Dryas transition were the result of natural fires and not necessarily the effect of an extra-terrestrial impact. Netherlands Journal of Geosciences (Geologie en Mijnbouw) vol. 87, no. 4, pp. 359-361.
PDF file at:
http://www.imep-cnrs.com/docu/charcoal.pdfhttp://www.njgonline.nl/publish/articles/000404/english.html

A paper about the role of climatic change unrelated to extraterrestrial impacts in wildfire synchrony is:

Kitzberger, T., P. M. Brown, E. K. Heyerdahl, T. W. Swetnam, and T. T. Veblen, 2007, Contingent Pacific–Atlantic Ocean influence on multicentury wildfire synchrony over western North America.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. vol. 104 , no. 2.pp. 543-548.
Abstract at:
http://www.pnas.org/content/104/2/543.abstract

Source: Paul Heinrich. LA, USA