Wildfires in New Mexico

By Tim, Tamara, Jerry By Tim, Tamara, Jerry and Valerieand Valerie

“Wildfires”

• Wildfires occur on every continent except Antarctica. Fossil records and human history contain accounts of wildfires, as wildfires can occur in periodic intervals. Wildfires can cause extensive damage, both to property and human life, but they also have various beneficial effects on wilderness areas.

Natural Hazards - WildfiresWildfires are a growing natural hazard in most regions of the United States, posing a threat to life and property, particularly where native ecosystems meet developed areas.However, because fire is a natural (and often beneficial) process, fire suppression can lead to more severe fires due to the buildup of vegetation, which creates more fuel.In addition, the secondary effects of wildfires, including erosion, landslides, introduction of invasive species, and changes in water quality, are often more disastrous than the fire itself.**The goal is to build more resilient communities and ecosystems.

We will attempt to show how forest density allows for a healthy fire with the fire model in NetLogo. We have split the model into 4 quadrants that will have different tree height and forest density. Each quadrant will have a slider to control tree height and forest density.

The expected outcome of the NetLogo model was to show that the more dense the forest and the shorter trees the longer the fire will burn and the more wide spread the fire will be.

What does this mean?

• The combination of high temperatures, low humidity, and warm breezes create a recipe for the increased risk of Brush and Forest Fires.   Wildfires often begin unnoticed, but spread quickly, igniting brush, trees and homes.   

Our current model represents how a fire can spread very quickly with high and low

density!

 OUR MODEL:

This is where the fire is being started in the center and spreading out! 

Our Model!

Our Continuing Model

5th model

6th Model

Final model with programming

Model with data

References: 1. E:/wildfiresinfo.mht Mass.gov Public Safety

2. Wildfires Wikipedia enwikipedia.org/wiki/wildfire

3. Natural Hazards www.usgs.gov./hazards/wildfires/

4. How Wildfires Work! http://Science.howstuffworks.com/wildfire.htm

5. Dale and Janet/Supercomputer Challenge

6. http ;//www.treesearch.fs.fed.us/pubs/31813