Last edited 30 Sep 2022

Fire Weather Index FWI

The Fire Weather Index (FWI) is worldwide index used to estimate fire danger risk. It is meteorologically based and consists of different elements that take account of the effects of fuel moisture and wind on the behaviour and spread of fire. The higher the FWI, the higher the risk - or the more favourable meteorological conditions are to trigger a wildfire.

This indicator can help shape long-term tourism strategies and future investments under a changing climate.

MAIN VARIABLES
NAME UNITS DESCRIPTION
Daily fire weather index Dimensionless The fire weather index values at a daily temporal resolution for the selected year. The higher the index value, the more favourable the meteorological conditions to trigger a wildfire are.
Number of days with high fire danger Count Number of days per year with a fire weather index greater than 30 based upon the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) classification.
Number of days with moderate fire danger Count The number of days per year with a daily fire weather index greater than 15 based upon the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) classification.
Number of days with very high fire danger Count Number of days per year with a fire weather index greater than 45 based upon the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) classification.
Seasonal fire weather index Dimensionless The mean fire weather index value over the European fire season (June-September). This is calculated as the sum of the daily fire weather index over the European fire season divided by the total number of days within this date range. The higher the index value, the more favourable the meteorological conditions to trigger a wildfire are.

Source : https://climate.copernicus.eu/fire-weather-index

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