It’s time now for the Briefing chat, where we discuss a couple of stories highlighted in the Nature Briefing. So, Ben, what have you got this week?

Very Extreme Danger in several areas of #Spain 🇪🇸, in #Vaucluse 🇫🇷 and in #Beira Baixa in Portugal 🇵🇹 A wildland fire in Madison County is continuing to grow at a rapid rate. The Virginia Department of Forestry reports the fire near Quaker Run Road is on private land and has burned 125 acres as of Friday morning. Local, state and federal are on the scene, but the fire is only about 10 percent […] Wildfires are raging across Europe and North America as scorching temperatures and dry conditions fuel the blazes that have cost lives and destroyed livelihoods.

Colored monitor or sensor icon on the map to get more details about particle pollution at your location, including information on actions to take to protect your health. Particle pollution is the main type of pollution in smoke. Portugal: A wildfire started on July 17 in the Murca municipality, in northern Portugal and spread towards Vila Pouca de Aguiar and Carrazedo de Montenegro.

Research Highlight: Microbes in Neanderthals’ mouths reveal their carb-laden diet 10:04 Briefing Chat Over 34 locations exceeded the UK's previous temperature record of 38.7C from 2019, according to the Met Office With temperatures spiking above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit), wildfires are raging across several countries in Europe, prompting mass evacuations. The Map is a collaborative effort between the U.S. Forest Service (USFS)-led Interagency Wildland Fire Air Quality Response Program and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).With global temperatures rising, this could be ''the coldest'' summer of the rest of our lives. The time to act is now. First up on the show this week, reporter Geoff Marsh has been finding out about a very unusual type of forest fire that can seemingly rise from the dead. Countries such as Portugal and Greece experience fires most summers. But hotter temperatures are also pushing wildfires into regions not used to them and thus less prepared to cope. A view of Byas-Kuel village after a wildfire, in Russia’s vast Siberia region Photograph: Vadim Skryabin/AP United States

A fire also erupted on July 8 in part of California’s Yosemite National Park, home of some of the world’s largest and oldest giant sequoia trees. The flames consumed 1,526 hectares (3,772 acres) according to a report by InciWeb, a US interagency All-risk Incident Information management system. The Bootleg Fire illuminates the sky at night near Bly in Oregon on July 16. Payton Bruni/AFP/Getty Images

A major blaze in the village of Wennington in east London ripped through fields and homes, with the full extent of the damage - and any casualties - yet to be determined Over 34 locations exceeded the UK's previous temperature record today, the Met Office says in a Tweet.