EXPLORATORY FIRECLIMATE SURVEYS ON PRESCRIBED BURNS

Abstract

In the summer of 1957, short-term weather surveys were made in four prescribed burn areas in the central Sierra Nevada foothills and in the central Coast Range in California The local fireclimate patterns were studied, a fire-weather forecast was adapted to the burn area for each fire, and attempts were made to note the effects of the fires on the fireclimate patterns. This paper describes the survey techniques used, gives an example of a forecast, and discusses some of the survey results. The latter include an increase in wind speed blowing out of the lee side of the fire, effects of the broadscale weather on the local patterns, down-canyon afternoon winds in east-facing canyons, and temperature observations and topographic effects on the lee side of a ridge.