CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP) — An Oregon State University professor is using federal funds to conduct research on how embers form and spread during devastating wildfires.

Assistant professor David Blunck's team is testing variables such as temperature, wind speed, timber species and branch diameter to figure out how to predict when embers will form, the Statesman Journal reported Friday.

The project is being funded by the federal government's Joint Fire Science Program and the team is sharing results with the U.S. Forest Service, the newspaper reported.

Wind-blown embers that jump far ahead of the fir...