Wildland Fire Potential, Contiguous US

Wildland Fire Potential delineates areas based on fire intensity, weather, frequency, and size, which was then classified into a relative ranking of fire potential from very low to very high. Fire severity is based on surface fuels potential and crown fire potential. Surface fuel potential was based on calculated values of rate of spread and flame lengths, using the national Fuel Characterization Classification Systems. Crown fire potential was based on assign relative classes of fire intensity to a current vegetation cover type map. Fire weather potential is based on the average number of days per year the relative energy release component was above the 95 percentile from 1980 to 2005, and the average number of days a year that experienced extreme fire weather based on thresholds of temperature, wind, and humidity from 1982 to 1997. Fire frequency and size is based on the number of 1/10 acres fires or greater per million acres and the number of 500 acres fire or greater per million acres from 1986 to 1996.