Spatial Patterns and Temporal Variability of the Haines Index related to the Wildland Fire Growth Potential over the Korean Peninsula

한반도 산불 확장 잠재도와 관련된 Haines Index의 시.공간적 특징

  • Choi Cwang-Yong (Department of Geography, Rutgers The State University of New Jersey) ;
  • Kim Jun-Su (Department of Meteorology, University of Utah) ;
  • Won Myoung-Soo (Forest Fire Division, Korea Forest Research Institute)
  • Published : 2006.06.01

Abstract

Windy meteorological conditions and dried fire fuels due to higher atmospheric instability and dryness in the lower troposphere can exacerbate fire controls and result in more losses of forest resources and residential properties due to enhanced large wildland fires. Long-term (1979-2005) climatology of the Haines Index reconstructed in this study reveals that spatial patterns and intra-annual variability of the atmospheric instability and dryness in the lower troposphere affect the frequency of wildland fire incidences over the Korean Peninsula. Exponential regression models verify that daily high Haines Index and its monthly frequency has statistically significant correlations with the frequency of the wildland fire occurrences during the fire season (December-April) in South Korea. According to the climatic maps of the Haines Index created by the Geographic Information System (GIS) using the Digital Elevation Model (DEM), the lowlands below 500m from the mean sea level in the northwestern regions of the Korean Peninsula demonstrates the high frequency of the Haines Index equal to or greater than five in April and May. The annual frequency of the high Haines Index represents an increasing trend across the Korean Peninsula since the mid-1990s, particularly in Gyeongsangbuk-do and along the eastern coastal areas. The composite of synoptic weather maps at 500hPa for extreme events, in which the high Haines Index lasted for several days consecutively, illustrates that the cold low pressure system developed around the Sea of Okhotsk in the extreme event period enhances the pressure gradient and westerly wind speed over the Korean Peninsula. These results demonstrate the need for further consideration of the spatial-temporal characteristics of vertical atmospheric components, such as atmospheric instability and dryness, in the current Korean fire prediction system.

대류권 하부의 높은 대기 불안정도와 건조도에 의해 바람이 강한 조건하에 화재 연료도 건조해지면 산불 통제가 어렵고 대형산불에 의한 더 많은 산림자원과 계산의 손실을 초래할 수 있다. 본 연구에서 제시된 장기간(1979-2005)의 Haines Index는 한반도 상의 대기 불안정도와 건조도의 시공간적 패턴이 우리나라 산불 발생빈도에 중요한 영향을 미치고 있음을 잘 보여주고 있다. 산불 발생빈도와 Haines Index 사이의 지수회귀모델은 주요 산불 발생기간동안(12월-4월)의 Haines Index 일평균 값 혹은 월별 발생빈도가 우리나라 산불 발생빈도와 통계적으로 유의미하게 상관되어 있음을 보여준다. 지리정보시스템(GIS)에서 수치표고모델(DEM)을 고려하여 작성한 Haines Index 기후도에 따르면, 5 이상의 높은 Haines Index는 주로 해발고도 500m 이하의 한반도 북서 저지대를 중심으로 4-5월에 자주 발생하고 있다. 이러한 Haines Index의 발생빈도는 1990년대 중반 이후 한반도 전체적으로 증가하는 추세를 보이고, 특히 경상북도와 동해안 지역을 따라 산불기간 동안 가장 뚜렷하게 증가하는 패턴을 보였다. 연구기간 동안 높은 Haines Index가 2-3일 연속적으로 발생한 극사상(extreme events)이 나타나는 시기의 500hPa 종관 평균도에 따르면, 오흐츠크해에 발달한 한랭저기압이 한반도 중층대기의 기압경도력을 높여 동서의 강한 바람장을 형성하는데 도움을 주고 있음을 알 수 있다. 이러한 결과들은 현재 우리나라 산불 예보 시스템에 대기 불안정도나 건조도와 같은 대기의 수직적 요소들의 시 공간적 특성도 고려되어야 하는 필요성을 잘 보여준다.

Keywords

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