BFB - Why use it - (potential uses)
Outputs from WFDSS Basic Fire Behavior (BFB) have a variety of uses. Some examples include:
- Fire behavior outputs (flame lengths, rates of spread, crown fire activity, etc.) can be calculated using forecasted weather and displayed in WFDSS BFB to provide insight into expected fire behavior across the landscape extent for a chosen time (e.g., the peak of the burning period for the next afternoon).
- Hauling Chart outputs display modeled flame length with the same breakpoints as the Hauling Chart (Fire Characteristics Chart) developed by Rothermel (1983). This allows for a quick interpretation of potential fire behavior and associated control tactics.
- Using forecasted weather, landscape-wide 1-hour and 10-hour fuel moistures could be calculated for determining likelihood of successful burnout conditions.
- Using archived (historic) wind and weather observations, WFDSS BFB calculations could be used for critiquing landscape fuels data by choosing a date and time of a 2008 fire that had recorded fire behavior observations. For example, the BFB Crown Fire Activity output could be compared to actual observations of crown fire activity for a given time and location.