ncfwi

---

This is a Python package that ingests hourly gridded netcdf weather data (temperature, wind speed, relative humidity, and precipitation) to calculate and produce hourly gridded Fire Weather Indices (FWIs) according to the Canadian Forest Fire Danger Rating System (CFFDRS). Note that this package is unofficial and is not endorsed by NRCAN/RNCAN—it is purely for the purposes of my own research.

Note: I am planning on re-writing this package from the ground up, as in its current state it is fairly inflexible and has several small inconsistencies that I have not been able to remedy. In the meantime, I would advise against its use unless you're willing to fiddle around with it to make it fit your needs. Feel free to reach out with any questions.

Installation

Using Bash:

git clone https://github.com/bobby-payne/ncfwi.git
cd ncfwi
pip install -r requirements.txt

You will also need the clone and point to (in the config) the NG-CFFDRS GitHub Repository, as my package implements their functions for the calculation of hourly FWIs:

git clone https://github.com/nrcan-cfs-fire/cffdrs-ng.git

Usage

Edit conf/config.yaml with the relevant information for computing the FWIs from your netcdf data. Then simply run compute_indices.py with your python interpreter. The FWIs will be saved in your specified output directory organized as follows

your_output_directory/
├── FWI/
|    ├── 2001.nc
|    ├── 2002.nc
|    └── ⋮
├── ISI/
|    ├── 2001.nc
|    ├── 2002.nc
|    └── ⋮   
├── BUI/
|    ├── 2001.nc
|    ├── 2002.nc
|    └── ⋮
⋮

You can specify which indices and/or weather variables you would like returned in the output, including the fire season mask. A full list of suitable output variables are listed in valid_outputs.txt. Note that the variable MASK must be saved in order for overwintering to work. A variable PFS_PREC (post-fire season precipitation accumulation) is automatically saved if overwintering is set to true, and should not be included in output_vars.

Important: Input variables are assumed to be in UTC. However, output variables are given in local time! (This behaviour is subject to change in a future update).

Known Issues

• Cannot handle domains that cover more than one timezone
• Non-fire season dependent weather variables are saved with season mask applied to them
• See issues

Feedback and Bug Reports

If you have any suggestions or wish to report a bug, please feel free to contribute by creating an issue.