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| Date | Item | Topic | Assignment | Learning Goals. By the end of this section, you will be able to ... |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 7 Sep 2023 |
A1 | Indigenous vs. fire suppression policy. | Read the UBC Land Acknowledgement. See how past policy on fire suppression relates to increased fire danger today. View the "Returning Fire to the Land" video. | Appreciate the heritage of earlier peoples on Canadian lands, and state the name of the First Nation peoples on whose land UBC sits. Explain why wildfires are becoming more severe compared to 100 years ago. |
| Day 1 7 Sep 2023 |
A2 | Historical & recent past fires | Welcome, intro, and photographic overview of some of the historical significant wildfires in Canada. (Fire Basics item fb1) | List 3 major wildfires that affected western Canada since year 2000, and describe what weather conditions they had in common (if any). |
| Day 1 7 Sep 2023 |
A3 | Students | Your background in weather and computing. |
(The instructors will learn about your background in meteorology, and your computer programming skills. This will allow the instructors to tailor the course to give all students equal chance of success.) |
| Day 1 7 Sep 2023 |
A4 | This course | Read the material on the Home page of this website covering: Welcome, Course Info, Syllabus Overview, Course Goals, Instructors & TAs, and Textbooks. | Explain how this course works, and where you look for various resources and assignments. |
| Day 1 7 Sep 2023 |
A5 | This course | Read the material on the Home page covering: Evaluation and Getting Started. Explore the tabs at the top of the web pages. | Confirm that you know how you earn your grade in this course, how to start in the online aspects of this course, and what types of info you can get from the tabs at the top of the web pages. |
| Day 1 7 Sep 2023 |
A6 | This course | Skim all the material on the Home page within the "Guidelines, Info & Resources" section. Log into Canvas and do Quiz A6, which covers topics A4-A6 above. (For students who join the course late, we leave this quiz open for 2 weeks.) |
Confirm that you know not to cheat, and that you know where to get info on netiquette, academic & religious accommodation, learning commons, wellness info, teaching improvement, and course recommendations. |
| Day 1 7 Sep 2023 |
HW01 | Review of meteorological fundamentals. | Read Lackmann sections 1.0-1.2 . Do HW01 exercises (see Canvas). |
Define the meaning of synoptic and mesoscale, and how they relate to other scales of atmospheric motion. Explain meteorological phenomena associated with each scale. Utilize coordinate systems, meteorological variables, and SI units. |
| Date | Item | Topic | Assignment | Learning Goals. By the end of this section, you will be able to ... |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 7 Sep 2023 |
B1 | Wildfire Triangles & Ranking System | Read Fire-Basics item fb2 on fire and wildfire triangles. Read the fb3 info on the BC wildfire ranking system. Do quiz B1 in Canvas. |
Explain why fires need fuel, oxygen and ignition/heat. Explain the roles of season, weather, and topography in wildfire. For different-intensity fires, explain how to classify them into ranks, and describe how they are fought. |
| Day 1 7 Sep 2023 |
B2 | Case-study fires | Skim the Overview web page listing the wildfire cases that we cover in this course. | List 4 of the case-study fires that we cover in this course. |
| Day 2 12 Sep 2023 |
B3 | Geography | Strengthen your geographical awareness regarding place names, topography, time zones, and airmass origins. Do quiz B3 in Canvas. |
Locate on a map all the Canadian provinces and territories, and western US states. Locate on a map the Rocky Mountains, Cascades, Olympics, Coast(al) Ranges, Sierra Nevada, Purcell Mtns, Selkirk Mtns, Monashee Mtns, and the Insular Mtns. Discuss how the topography of BC differs from the rest of Canada. Name and locate airmass source regions for North America |
| Day 2 12 Sep 2023 |
B4 | Map Analysis | Learn (or re-learn) how to analyze weather maps by drawing isopleths (mc01.1) (lines of equal value) based on observations of weather variables. Practice by analyzing upper-air charts (mc01.2). Lab Exercise B4 - Hand Analysis of Upper-air Maps. |
Find online sources of upper-air and surface weather data. Interpret station plot models and hand-analyze these maps to draw isotherms, isotachs, isobars or height, isohumes, etc. Analyze and interpret upper-air weather maps. |
| Day 3 14 Sep 2023 |
B5 | Wildfire Fuels | Study the horizontal and vertical distribution of fuels (Fire Basics item fb4). Read about different fire-danger rating systems (fb5). Learn about fuel characteristics/arrangements from item fb6 in the Fire Basics tab. Do quiz B5 in Canvas. |
Describe how the fuel layers of deep duff (& peat), duff, surface, understory, and crown relate to wildfires. Compare the Canadian, US and Mark 5 fuel systems. Explain why fuel (e.g., tree) quantity, spacing, diameter, and moisture are important in classifying potential fire behavior. |
| Day 3 14 Sep 2023 |
B6 | Wildfire fuel types, layers, and moisture codes | Read Fire Basics item fb8 on fuel moisture. Skim all 16 Canadian fuel types (fb18). Read Fire Basics item fb10 for an overview of the Fire Weather Index (FWI) system. Learn about the 3 fuel moisture codes used in Canada (fb11). Do quiz B6 in Canvas. |
Give examples of several of the 16 fuel types of the Fire Behavior System. Explain the concepts and utility of fine fuels, duff, & deep duff/root layers. Calculate and use the Fine Fuel Moisture Code (FFMC), Duff Moisture Code (DMC), Drought Code (DC) |
| Day 3 14 Sep 2023 |
B7 | Synoptics - Part 1: Extra-tropical cyclones | In Lackman Chapter 5 Extratropical Cyclones: read sections 5.0 - 5.2, (skip section 5.3 temporarily), and read section 5.4. In Stull Chapter 13 on Extratropical Cyclones: read section 13.0 - 13.1 |
Explain the role of cyclones in the global heat transport. Locate cyclone storm tracks on a map. Identify regions of climatologically frequent cyclone formation (i.e., cyclogenesis). Summarizing the understanding of cyclones and their evolution as developed by the Bergen school, and how that has influenced modern meteorology. |
| Day 4: 19 Sep 2023 |
B8 | Upper-Air Maps (continued), and Cyclones | More practice on drawing isopleths on upper-air maps. Interpretation of jet-stream patterns (mc01, topic 2b). Overview of mid-latitude cyclone evolution and movement (mc04.1) Lab Exercises - (1) Analyze another upper-air map. (2) Give a weather briefing. |
Describe typical stages in the life cycle of a cyclone, including central pressure, winds, clouds, and movement. Gain proficiency in analyzing upper air maps, including height contours and isotachs. Use the resulting contours to identify troughs, ridges, positive & negative tilted troughs, cut-off lows, omega and rex blocks, and other typical patterns. |
| Day 5: 21 Sep 2023 |
B9 | Cyclolysis & Cyclogenesis | Learn how boundary-layer drag kills cyclones (Cyclolysis: mc04.2), and how divergence aloft can create cyclones (Cyclogenesis-1: mc04.3). Read Stull section 13.2. Read Lackmann section 5.3.0 - 5.3.4. Lab Exercise - Give a weather briefing. [see Piazza for the weather briefing schedule] |
Explain the competing roles of boundary layer convergence and upper-air divergence in cyclogenesis and cyclolysis. For cyclogenesis theories, compare the vorticity view, pressure view, quasi-geostrophic (QG) interpretation, and evolution of upper-air troughs. |
| Day 5: 21 Sep 2023 |
B10 | Cyclogenesis (continued) | Learn how upper-air ridges and troughs (Cyclogenesis-2: mc04.4) . Read Lackmann sections 5.3.5 - 5.3.6. Read Stull section 13.4.
Lab Exercise - Give a weather briefing. [see Piazza for the weather briefing schedule] Do HWxx exercises (see Canvas). |
For any of the weather maps that we use, give its approximate height (km) above ground. If there are multiple fields on the map, explain how the fields are used together. State the meaning of lines and symbols on the map. Explain what the words "Init" and "Valid" indicate. Discuss cyclone self development, and explain the potential vorticity (PV) framework for understanding cyclone evolution. |
Learning Plan: We will do a forensic meteorological analysis of this fire. Namely, we will tie the known evolution of the fire with the known evolution of the weather. To do this, we will use satellite observations, surface weather analyses, and weather maps produced by numerical weather prediction (NWP). This approach will introduce you to synoptic and mesoscale weather forecasting.
| Date | Item | Topic | Assignment | Learning Goals. By the end of this section, you will be able to ... |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 6 26 Sep 2023 |
C1 | Overview | Read an overview of fire evolution (chronology) and read a detailed timeline of Fire and Weather Evolution. View the associated lecture snippet HL01a by Chris Rodell if you missed lecture.
Lab Exercise - Give a weather briefing for Vancouver. xxx. |
Identify two periods of rapid fire growth that were driven by changes in weather. |
| Day 6 26 Sep 2023 |
C2 | Antededent Conditions | Review the geography (Google Maps, and Alberta topo map ) and antecedent conditions (GWIS ; turn on the Fire Danger Forecast, and select the date and the index to display: BUI). View Lecture snippet HL01b by Chris Rodell if you missed lecture. xxx. |
Place the fire location into a geographic context. Explain which weather conditions earlier in the year primed the region for a major fire. Describe the values of fire-weather metrics and insolation for this case, particularly as they relate to conditions at the start of the fire. |
| Day 6 26 Sep 2023 |
C3 | Worldview Satellite | View the tutorial on how to use Worldview, NASA's display program for polar-orbiting satellites. Lab Exercise on WorldView (mc03.2) - Access satellite images for assigned fires, and give team presentations. |
Access satellite imagery for any recent fire date. View the evolution of wildfire hot spots, smoke, and burn scars. Access fire info such as radiative power, area burned, etc. Compare before- and after-fire imagery. Explain pros and cons of polar-orbiting vs. geostationary imagery for Canada. Use satellite images in briefings. |
| Day 7 28 Sep 2023 |
C4 | Cyclogenesis (continued) | Favored locations include east of upper-level (Rossy wave) trough (Cyclogenesis-2: mc04.4, finish from last time) and vertical stacking of lows (Cyclogenesis-3: mc04.5). Jet streaks (Cyclogenesis-4: mc04.6) and start Lee Cyclogenesis-5: (mc04.7, finished thru exercise 2). Lab Exercise - Give a weather briefing. [see Piazza for the weather briefing schedule] |
Use upper-level (jet-stream-level) maps of heights and isotachs to anticipate locations of likely cyclogenesis at the earth's surface. |
| Day 8 3 Oct 2023 |
C5 | First Rapid-Growth: Synoptic Overview | Read about the weather maps and meteorological fields (mc02.1) that we will use to understand the fire weather affecting our case studies. Animate the NOAA surface weather map (use the calendar button to select the date, and then zoom to your region of interest). (See an explanation of map symbols .) Access the Worldview of satellite-observed hot spots (do the Worldview Lab Activitiy: select the date for this case study at bottom left, turn on place labels and boarders/coastlines, select Terra and Aqua/ MODIS orbital tracks, and turn on Fires and Thermal Anomalies). View the Lecture snippet HL01c by Chris Rodell if you missed lecture.
Lab Exercise - Give a weather briefing. [see Piazza for the weather briefing schedule] xxx. |
Access weather-map and satellite hot-spot resources online. Relate the weather evolution as viewed in surface and upper-air weather maps to rapid fire spread as indicated by satellite hot-spots. Describe the synoptic nature of the low-level jet. |
| Day 8 3 Oct 2023 |
C6 | First Rapid-Growth: Synoptic Dynamics | Access NWP weather maps via the Forecast Tools button in the page header above. (Then click on the High-Level fire button, and use links in the left frame to select the weather maps you want to view. Use the arrow keys on your computer to step forward and backward in time). This weather briefing starts with the big picture in the upper atmosphere, and works down to lower atmospheric layers that are zoomed into the region of interest. View the lecture snippet HL01d by Chris Rodell if you missed lecture.
Discuss GWIS (fb24). See how Spring Dip (fb26) affected the High-Level fire. Learn about some of the fire-weather indices BUI and ISI (fb14), and how to view real-time values of fire weather and indices on FireWeather.ca (fb25). Lab Exercise - Give a weather briefing. [see Piazza for the weather briefing schedule] xxx. |
Utilize NWP synoptic weather maps at different atmospheric levels to create a 3-D picture in your mind about the state of the atmosphere. Explain how location and movement of Rossby-wave ridges and troughs affected the evolution of the High-Level fire. Describe what causes Spring Dip, and how it affects fires. Explain the main factors that affect the BUI and ISI fire weather indices. Utilize FireWeather forecasts to access weather and indices. |
| Day 9 5 Oct 2023 |
C7 | Cyclogenesis (continued) & QG Concepts | Finish Lee cyclogenesis-5 including review of vorticity (mc04.7). Start overview of Quasi-Geostrophic (QG) theory for cyclogenesis, including explanation of the Laplacian (mc04.10). Consider thermodynamic cyclogenesis-6 including cyclone bombs (mc04.8). Synthesize the "big picture" concepts for cyclone evolution (mc04.9).
Lab Exercise - Give a weather briefing. [see Piazza for the weather briefing schedule] |
Explain how conservation of potential vorticity affects cyclone evolution. Describe two mechanisms that explain lee cyclogenesis. Show how to physically interpret the Laplacian. Explain the meaning of terms in the QG equations for vorticity, height tendency, and surface-pressure tendency. Explain how condensation and latent-heat release can stimulate cyclogenesis. Explain how all the cyclogenesis and cyclolysis factors work together to explain cyclone evolution. |
| Day 10 10 Oct 2023 |
C8 | First Rapid-Growth: Low-level Jet | Examine vertical-cross sections through the atmosphere. Use the weather maps to measure horizontal pressure and temperature gradients. Relate winds to gradients using dynamics theory. Lab Exercise - Cross-section analysis. Lab Exercise - Give a weather briefing. [see Piazza for the weather briefing schedule] |
Identify relative jet maxima in the vertical cross section. Relate the low-level jet wind speed to the horizontal pressure gradient. Determine if that pressure gradient was predominantly driven by terrain slope, horizontal temperature gradients, inertial oscillations, or other factors. |
| Day 10 10 Oct 2023 |
C9 | Second Rapid-Growth: Synoptic Overview | Return to the detailed timeline of Fire and Weather Evolution to identify the 2nd period of rapid fire growth. View lecture snippet HL02a if needed. Lab Exercise - The 7 lab items are split among all the teams, to investigate and present to the rest of the class. |
Enhance your ability to access weather-map and satellite hot-spot resources online. Describe how the weather changed to cause a second period of rapid fire growth. |
| Day 10 10 Oct 2023 |
C10 | Second Rapid-Growth: Synoptic Dynamics | Access 25 kPa & 50 kPa NWP weather maps for this new time interval via the Forecast Tools button in the page header above. Examine how a dominant long-wave ridge broke down during passage of a short-wave trough. View lecture snippet HL02c if needed. Use 85 kPa NWP maps of winds and humidity to discern a cold front that moved over the fire. View lecture snippet HL02d if needed. xxxs. Lab Exercise - Give a weather briefing. [see Piazza for the weather briefing schedule] |
Compare the dynamics and propagation speeds of long- and short-waves in the jet stream. Relate Rossby-wave ridges and troughs to fronts and other surface weather. Utilize NWP weather maps to investigate synoptic-dynamic relationships. Relate wind shifts to frontal passage. |
| Day 10 10 Oct 2023 |
C11 | Second Rapid-Growth: Surface Fronts | Access the 100 m, 10 m, and surface weather maps for wind, humidity, and temperature via the Forecast Tools button in the page header above. Tie the frontal-related weather (03Z and 06Z on 30 May 2019) to fire-fuel-indices and fire-weather-indices to explain why the fire evolved the way it did. View lecture snippets HL02e and HL02f if needed. xxx. Lab Exercise - Give a weather briefing. [see Piazza for the weather briefing schedule] |
Describe the unexpected changes in near-surface weather due to frontal passage, and how it affected fire growth. Relate weather to changes in fuel and fire indices. Use thermodynamic principles to explain why relative humidity increases when temperature decreases, even with no addition of moisture to the atmosphere. |
| Day 10 10 Oct 2023 |
C12 | Recap Briefing | Work in teams to create concise, informative, captivating fire-weather briefings. Lab Exercise - Forensic weather briefing re-cap of the High Level fire, weather, and societal impacts. |
Synthesize your fire, synoptics, and dynamics knowledge into a coherent understanding that you can describe to other technical and lay personnel. Demonstrate that ability in weather briefings that you give. |
Note: lecture snippets may not be provided for all case studies. They were provided during the first few weeks to: (1) accommodate students who added the course late; and (2) to demonstrate how to utilize NWP, satellite data, and other products to give concise, informative weather briefings.
| Date | Item | Topic | Assignment | Learning Goals. By the end of this section, you will be able to ... |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 11 17 Oct 2023 |
D1 | Midterm Exam 1 | Study for the midterm exam, which will be 50 minutes long, written on paper in class. Open books, notes, laptops, calculator. (Note: after the exam, we will have a normal lecture, covering the next fire - see the Schedule - Part 2). A cross-reference list of study topics will be provided on Piazza and Canvas before the exam. An optional review session (via zoom) will be scheduled a day or two before the exam. |
Demonstrate your ability to explain and utilize the fire basics and meteorological concepts covered so far in this course. |
| Day x | xx |
