In a recent study, Kim and co-author Woodam Chung, PhD, a forest engineer at Oregon State University, were the first to objectively measure biomechanical stress experienced by professional timber fellers during actual timber felling operations. They also evaluated forest workers’ perceptions of wearable exoskeletons—emerging technology already being used in other physically demanding industries such as shipbuilding and automotive and aerospace manufacturing.

This study reveals that bark beetle-driven forest disasters in Central Europe follow a hidden 9–12-year cycle linked to solar activity. Logging of bark beetles culminate during solar minima in drought years, while it drops during solar maxima when droughts are stopped by precipitations. Our study used five decades of data from Austria, Czechia, and Slovakia.  Research reveals solar cycles and climate patterns—especially total solar irradiance—play a major role in cyclical forest damage.