Open AccessMeteorology and forest fires: Some case studies
Author(s) -
Palmieri Sabino,
Inghilesi Roberto,
Siani Anna Maria
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
meteorological applications
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.672
H-Index - 59
eISSN - 1469-8080
pISSN - 1350-4827
DOI - 10.1002/met.5060030407
Subject(s) - environmental science , evapotranspiration , meteorology , wind speed , precipitation , aridity index , climatology , relative humidity , index (typography) , air temperature , atmospheric sciences , geography , geology , computer science , ecology , world wide web , biology
The role of the physical and meteorological factors involved in forest fires is outlined. The index used by the Meteorology Group of Rome University is then described. The methodology is based on the computation of an aridity factor which is a non‐linear function of precipitation and evapotranspiration in the last 40 days. The aridity is then coupled with an exponential function which takes into account actual or predicted meteorological conditions (temperature, wind, relative humidity and rainfall) to give the fire‐risk index. The results of applying the index to cases of fires in Liguria and Tuscany are given. It is suggested that the development of fine‐mesh non‐hydrostatic meteorological models coupled with fire spread and burn rate models is a promising approach for scientific progress in this field.