NOAA/National Weather Service's Chief Learning Office United States Department of Commerce
Commerce Learning Center
Fire Weather

PCU 2: Assess the Fire Environment


Monitor and analyze the fire environment to anticipate and identify critical fire weather patterns, fuels, and topography.

Job Task Skills and Knowledge:

  • Comprehend and utilize terminology associated with the fire environment
  • Identify and assess relevant fire weather forecast parameters
  • Apply fire environment information when creating forecasts
  • Maintain a basic understanding of fire danger rating systems and drought indices
  • Identify and assess critical fire weather patterns, conditions and climatology
  • Identify and assess weather regimes in complex terrain including diurnal and local effects
  • Analysis and integration of local and GACC scale data sets
  • Analysis and integration of remote sensing tools


Instructional Components:

  • S290 Intermediate Wildland Fire Behavior Course (units 2,3,4,5,6,7,9)
  • PBL in Complex Terrain - Part 1 (COMET - Advanced Fire Weather Forecasters Course)
  • PBL in Complex Terrain - Part 2 (COMET - Advanced Fire Weather Forecasters Course)
  • Fire Model Matrix (COMET - Advanced Fire Weather Forecasters Course)
  • Fire Weather Climatology (COMET - Advanced Fire Weather Forecasters Course)
  • S130 Firefighter Training - Module 2 Terminology
  • Given a fire perimeter plotted on a topographic map, describe how the weather could vary at given points on the landscape (exercise)
  • Given a set of fireline observations, observations from a local weather station and a fire zone forecast, describe how a site for a proposed prescribed burn within the fire zone could experience differences from the elements in the zone forecast. (exercise)
  • Given 3 sets of weather observations from different locations on a fire, utilize a terrain map to explain what factors could be impacting the winds. (exercise)
  • Locate active fires using radar and satellite data (exercise)
  • Forecasting Basic Fire Weather Elements (temps/RH/winds and the impacts of terrain)including how these elements impact customers
  • Fuels Status Monitoring (including GACC data sets)
  • Using Remote Sensing for Fire Weather

Legend for Instructional Components:
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