Wildfire Knowledge Graph · Fire Behaviour
Combustion in which volatile gases burn in a visible flame above or adjacent to the fuel.
In plain language
Combustion in which volatile gases burn in a visible flame above or adjacent to the fuel.
Why it matters
Flaming Combustion is useful because it separates one specific part of wildfire behaviour, exposure, operations or evidence from nearby concepts that can otherwise be mixed together.
What is flaming combustion?
Flaming combustion is combustion in which gases released from heated fuel burn visibly as flame. In vegetation fires, solid fuel first heats and releases combustible gases; those gases mix with oxygen and burn in the flame zone.
Flaming vs smoldering combustion
Flaming combustion is generally faster and produces a visible flame zone. Smoldering combustion is slower, flameless combustion that can continue in larger or compact fuels after the main flaming front has passed.
This distinction matters when reading wildfire reports because an area can have little visible flame yet still contain significant residual heat and ongoing combustion.
Related: Fire Front · Mop-Up and Residual Heat · Heat Release Rate.