Fire Modeling Services Framework (FMSF) is an Application Programming Interface (API) for machine to machine (or system to system) connections with a web-service/REST architecture. The FMSF provides hosted wildland fire behavior and effects models and tools for use within other systems or applications such as the Interagency Fuel Treatment Decision Support System (IFTDSS). The FMSF provides users of those applications with improved performance, consistent data, and faster analysis results. In addition, it reduces Information Technology (IT) development and maintenance needs by hosting the models/tools in one service instead of each system/application independently building and maintaining the same models/tools.
The FMSF is part of a shift to a service-oriented architecture (Figure 1) in wildland fire management IT. FMSF hosts authoritative models/tools in a central location that supports 99% uptime reliability, fail-over capability and zero downtime with updates and upgrades. The FMSF is currently used by IFTDSS and will be used by the Wildland Fire Decision Support System (WFDSS) in the future followed by access to other applications.
The FMSF is not able to do all of this modeling work by itself. The FMSF has partnered with LANDFIRE and the Fire Environment Mapping System (FEMS) to provide independent data services needed to run the models or tools available in the FMSF (Figure 1). Landscape data (gridded fuels and topography) for running the models is acquired via the LANDFIRE Product Service. FEMS will provide data required to define fire environment inputs for modeling via gridded and Remote Automated Weather Station (RAWS) weather data. FEMS is not currently available; however, they anticipate being completed later in 2023.
The vision of the future for FMSF is that researchers and scientist will have a place to evaluate, refine, and test wildland fire models and tools in a cloud environment and assist with transfer of science and technology into the user community.
Figure 1. Representative view of the Fire Modeling Services Framework (FMSF) and hosted models/tools.
The FMSF includes the following wildland fire behavior and effects models:
- FlamMap
- MTT (Minimum Travel Time)
- RANDIG (Random Ignition)
- FARSITE (Fire Area Simulator)
- FSPro (Fire Spread Probability)
- Spatial FOFEM (First Order Fire Effects Model) – Tree Mortality
- Spatial FOFEM – Consumption and Emissions
Document Downloads
FMSF Team
Henry Bastian, Project Manager, DOI Office of Wildland Fire
Reggie Goolsby, Technical Lead, USFS Wildland Fire Management RD&A
Nicole Vaillant, Technical Lead, USFS Wildland Fire Management RD&A
Jim Riddering, Subject Matter Expert, USFS Wildland Fire Management RD&A