Temperatures of Headfires in the Southern Mixed Prairie of Texas

Abstract

Maximum soil surface temperatures varied from 182 F to 1260 F for fuels that varied from 1546 to 7025 lb/acre Tempil card data correlated well with these data-r = 0.919. The duration of temperatures above 150 F varied from 0.9 to 5.4 minutes. The data from this study can be used to simulate approximate intensities of natural fires with a portable burner. Fires with soil surface temperatures above 1000 F show potential to kill mesquite trees.