B. Koffi et al., REMOTE-SENSING OF BUSH FIRE DYNAMICS IN CENTRAL-AFRICA FROM 1984 TO 1988 - ANALYSIS IN RELATION TO REGIONAL VEGETATION AND PLUVIOMETRIC PATTERNS, Atmospheric research, 39(1-3), 1995, pp. 179-200
Spatial and temporal subcontinental patterns of are distribution in Af
rica, may vary strongly from year to year. These variations may be of
climatic or anthropic origin. Global Area Coverage (GAG) data, from th
e Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR), are known both to
provide a good description of fire calendar and on a continental scale
, a good indicator of locations of intense fire activity. In fact, the
GAC data, available on a daily basis back to July 1981, is the only s
ource of information actually available to determine burning patterns
both on a continental scale and over long periods of time. This study
presents the spatio-temporal distribution of vegetation fire in Centra
l Africa, as derived from GAC imagery, over the four 1984/85 to 1987/8
8 dry seasons of the Northern Hemisphere (November to February periods
). The analysis of the mean fire distribution patterns over the four d
ry seasons, as defined by vegetation cover and pluviometric conditions
, shows a north to south gradient of fire activity in the savannah dom
ain: This gradient of fire activity has been previously related to the
annual pluviometric calendar and the amount of rainfall. The strong i
nterannual variability in fire activity observed for this four-years-p
eriod could not, however, be explained by the monthly pluviometric pat
terns. The observed fire gradient therefore seems to result from addit
ional meteorological or anthropic parameters. The methodology used in
this study demonstrates the potential of GAC data for fire monitoring
at a subcontinental scale. Current work is extending the area of inter
est to the entire African continent using the 10-yr-period of GAC imag
ery.