Archive of Spotlight Feature Articles

NOAA research provides help to California firefighters

by Barbara McGehan

“FX-Net is the backbone of fire weather forecasting in the field...”

While weather conditions have improved in many parts of California, firefighters continue to work at putting out the fires. And forecasters with the National Weather Service (NWS) have been assisting them by using a new system that provides up-to-date weather information to the forecasters in the field. The core component of the new system is called FX-Net, and was developed over the last five years at NOAA's Forecast Systems Laboratory in Boulder, Colo.

An example of a screen display that can show high-resolution satellite, radar, observational and weather prediction model data to forecasters in the field

METS use the Rapid Update Cycle (RUC) model to check on wind and moisture conditions on an hourly basis. (larger image)

FX-Net delivers high-resolution satellite, radar, observational and weather prediction model data to forecasters called “IMETS”, or Incident Meterologists, who provide much needed information to firefighters on how to manage the fires.

FX-Net has proven to be a critical component for the fire management team struggling to save lives and control the fires in California over the past few weeks. Rich Douglas, Chief of the Meteorological Services Division at the NWS Western Region Headquarters, said, “The FX-Net system is heavily used. To the IMETS, it's the most critical system they have.”

Rocky Mt. fire forecaster checks his FX-Net system.

Douglas says that the system has had a huge impact on improving firefighter safety. The real-time wind and radar data display capability FX-Net provides to the forecasters is incredibly critical to the fire management team's efforts to get firefighters in the right position on the fire line, and in moving people out of harm's way. Most of the IMETS are communicating with the FX-Net server via a two-way satellite communications link.

The system provides a variety of weather displays on a laptop computer remote from the data server. According to Sher Schranz, project manager for FX-Net at FSL, “FX-Net is essentially a portable weather office for folks who have to work from the field.” It's the only system in the fire management office where 5 minute Doppler radar velocity data, critical to keeping track of the rapidly changing wind conditions, can be displayed. The system has all the same capabilities as a large computer in a National Weather Service office but FSL developed specialized compression techniques to make it portable.

Coal Seam Fire, Glenwood Springs, Colorado, June 2002

FX-Net was used for fireweather support during the Coal Seam Fire in Glenwood Springs, Colorado last year.

Rob Balfour, a National Weather Service IMET, supporting a fire management team in California, said this system is critical to rapidly update him on weather conditions. “FX-Net is the backbone of fire weather forecasting in the field,” he stated. He also uses a weather model developed at FSL, called the Rapid Update Cycle (RUC) model. “The IMETS use it for hourly soundings to check on wind and atmospheric moisture conditions,” he said. According to Balfour, both parameters are constantly changing and are critical when providing structure protection guidance to the fighters on the fire line. The system was used at all the fires the IMETS supported this season.

The Forecast Systems Laboratory conducts applied meteorological research and development to improve and create short-term warning and weather forecast systems, models, and observing technology using supercomputing and other leading-edge technology.

[11/10/03]

CLIMATE · OCEANS, GREAT LAKES, and COASTS · WEATHER and AIR QUALITY
ABOUT US · RESEARCH PROGRAMS · EDUCATION · HOME