Monitoring live fuel moisture content of heathland, shrubland and sclerophyll forest in south-eastern Australia using MODIS data

2012 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 257 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Caccamo ◽  
L. A. Chisholm ◽  
R. A. Bradstock ◽  
M. L. Puotinen ◽  
B. G. Pippen
Keyword(s):  
Moisture Content ◽  
Empirical Model ◽  
Fuel Moisture ◽  
Vegetation Types ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Sclerophyll Forest ◽  
Live Fuel Moisture ◽  
Fuel Moisture Content ◽  
South Eastern Australia

Live fuel moisture content is an important variable for assessing fire risk. Satellite observations provide the potential for monitoring fuel moisture across large areas. The objective of this study was to use data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer to monitor live fuel moisture content of three fire-prone vegetation types (shrubland, heathland and sclerophyll forest) in south-eastern Australia. The performances of four spectral indices (Normalised Difference Vegetation Index, Visible Atmospherically Resistant Index, Normalised Difference Infrared Index centred on 1650 nm and Normalised Difference Water Index) were compared. Models based on Visible Atmospherically Resistant Index and Normalised Difference Infrared Index centred on 1650 nm provided the best results (R2 values of 0.537 and 0.586). An empirical model based on these two indices was developed and its performance compared with a meteorological index traditionally used in this context, the Keetch–Byram Drought Index. The empirical model (R2 = 0.692) outperformed the meteorological index (R2 = 0.151), showing an enhanced capability to predict live fuel moisture content of the fire-prone vegetation types considered.

scholarly journals SAR-enhanced mapping of live fuel moisture content

2020 ◽  
Vol 245 ◽  
pp. 111797 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krishna Rao ◽  
A. Park Williams ◽  
Jacqueline Fortin Flefil ◽  
Alexandra G. Konings
Keyword(s):  
Moisture Content ◽  
Fuel Moisture ◽  
Live Fuel Moisture ◽  
Fuel Moisture Content

scholarly journals Effects of Live Fuel Moisture Content on Wildfire Occurrence in Fire-Prone Regions over Southwest China

Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 887 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaiwei Luo ◽  
Xingwen Quan ◽  
Binbin He ◽  
Marta Yebra
Keyword(s):  
Moisture Content ◽  
Southwest China ◽  
Burned Area ◽  
Fuel Moisture ◽  
Fire Occurrence ◽  
Subtropical Zone ◽  
Wildfire Occurrence ◽  
Live Fuel Moisture ◽  
Grassland Fire ◽  
Fuel Moisture Content

Previous studies have shown that Live Fuel Moisture Content (LFMC) is a crucial driver affecting wildfire occurrence worldwide, but the effect of LFMC in driving wildfire occurrence still remains unexplored over the southwest China ecosystem, an area historically vulnerable to wildfires. To this end, we took 10-years of LFMC dynamics retrieved from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) reflectance product using the physical Radiative Transfer Model (RTM) and the wildfire events extracted from the MODIS Burned Area (BA) product to explore the relations between LFMC and forest/grassland fire occurrence across the subtropical highland zone (Cwa) and humid subtropical zone (Cwb) over southwest China. The statistical results of pre-fire LFMC and cumulative burned area show that distinct pre-fire LFMC critical thresholds were identified for Cwa (151.3%, 123.1%, and 51.4% for forest, and 138.1%, 72.8%, and 13.1% for grassland) and Cwb (115.0% and 54.4% for forest, and 137.5%, 69.0%, and 10.6% for grassland) zones. Below these thresholds, the fire occurrence and the burned area increased significantly. Additionally, a significant decreasing trend on LFMC dynamics was found during the days prior to two large fire events, Qiubei forest fire and Lantern Mountain grassland fire that broke during the 2009/2010 and 2015/2016 fire seasons, respectively. The minimum LFMC values reached prior to the fires (49.8% and 17.3%) were close to the lowest critical LFMC thresholds we reported for forest (51.4%) and grassland (13.1%). Further LFMC trend analysis revealed that the regional median LFMC dynamics for the 2009/2010 and 2015/2016 fire seasons were also significantly lower than the 10-year LFMC of the region. Hence, this study demonstrated that the LFMC dynamics explained wildfire occurrence in these fire-prone regions over southwest China, allowing the possibility to develop a new operational wildfire danger forecasting model over this area by considering the satellite-derived LFMC product.

A global review of remote sensing of live fuel moisture content for fire danger assessment: Moving towards operational products

2013 ◽  
Vol 136 ◽  
pp. 455-468 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Yebra ◽  
Philip E. Dennison ◽  
Emilio Chuvieco ◽  
David Riaño ◽  
Philip Zylstra ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Moisture Content ◽  
Fire Danger ◽  
Fuel Moisture ◽  
Danger Assessment ◽  
Live Fuel Moisture ◽  
Fuel Moisture Content
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