Uncontrolled wildfires can have an immense impact on the human population and the environment, as was witnessed in the wildfires in Indonesia during 1997. A fire analysis cycle can be defined that moves from mapping the potential for a fire start if there is ignition, to detecting the start of a fire, through monitoring the progression of a fire, to mapping the extent of the fire scars and the progression of vegetation regeneration. Such information would be useful to managers, policy makers and scientists interested in mitigating and evaluating the effects of wildfires. Fire potential quantifies the likelihood of a fire when there is ignition. Fire potential requires collecting baseline vegetation information, daily to weekly monitoring of vegetation condition or vigor, daily monitoring of weather conditions, and acquiring risk management information.
Fire detection requires daily monitoring of fire starts.
Fire monitoring requires daily monitoring of fire scars and of smoke and haze during the burn. Fire assessment requires analysis of fire burns and periodic monitoring of the vegetation transitions in the fire burns. Each of the four stages of the cycle is discussed in more detail below. The moisture in the dead vegetation is estimated from knowledge of local weather conditions. Thus, a baseline land cover map and a real-time estimate of the vegetation condition are needed.