Following are descriptions of the information fields on the page:
1 - Project Name: Typically fires in the Western U.S. have names with respect to the river drainage basin they are in. If your fire has a name, go ahead and put it in. Otherwise, lets say the fire is 2 miles north of Wilmington, NC, enter 2N of Wilmington, NC. Essentially put in something that you will be able to reference on the Spot Request Page because this is a required field.
2 - Requesting Agency: The Requesting Agency name and phone number are required. Fax number and contact person are optional, but we consider those very important if we have any questions or if there is a breakdown in dissemination capabilities. You will only need to enter your agency name, phone/fax numbers, and your name the first time you request a spot forecast. After that, it will be filled in with the same information as your last request. Please note that no other people other than the user and the NWS will see this information!
3 - Location: You have a couple of options on this one, but they are important with respect to having the location appear on the map. Proper location data will give us detailed map information for the fire and the terrain in the area.
4 - Elevation: The top and bottom elevations of the fire are required. You can just enter the numbers and do not need to mention the word feet. If the burn or fire is on flat ground, you can enter a value in only one of the boxes.
5 - Aspect: This field is required and important to know which side of a mountain the fire may be on. Use direction references such as N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW. If the fire or burn is in flat terrain (as is usually the case across the Eastern Carolinas), you can type in the word FLAT.
6 - Size: Enter the acreage if known, but it is an optional field.
7 - Fuel: Please indicate the type of fuel, either using fuel model numbers, or a description of the fuel such as grass, ponderosa pine, etc. Also, if you can indicate the amount of fuel sheltering, it helps us tremendously in providing accurate wind forecasts.
8 - Observations: Although it is considered optional in the program, it is required to get a spot forecast from the NWS. Please enter in the information with respect to the observation. For each observation we need to know where it is in relation to the burn, the elevation in feet, and the time (preferably using a 24 hour clock). The wind (in mph) can be specified as N12 Gust 25 or something like that. The temperature and wetbulb values (in degrees F) should be entered and the RH (in percent) and Dewpoint (in degrees F) can also be entered if known, otherwise they will be calculated for you. Finally, any remarks about clouds, weather, or other important information should be entered in the final box.
9 - Primary Forecast Elements: Not all spot forecasts are created equal, so we are asking you to tell us what are the forecast elements you need, or are particularly important. There are six parameters listed for you. Select which ones you want a forecast for, and for the time period(s) you would like as well (available times are Today, Tonight, and Tomorrow).
10 - Remarks: If a meteorological parameter is not listed and you would like to have Haines Index for example, enter that information in the Remarks section. You can also enter in information with respect to when you might want the forecast, or any other information/input you can give to us with respect to the spot forecast request.
11 - Action: You now have three options. You can Submit Request, Cancel Request, or Clear Form. When you hit Submit Request, various checks are performed on the data you have entered. Some problems make it impossible for your request to be accepted (for example, if you forget to enter a name for the burn), while others will produce warnings and messages for your information. If an error is found, you will be taken to a page that describes the errors or minor problems.
You can click on Go Back and Fix and have the opportunity to make the necessary changes. You can click on Submit Request anyway, but more than likely we will probably be sending back a question or calling. You do have one more option and that is to Cancel Request.
Click here to go to submit a web based spot forecast request