The objective of the International Multiproxy Paleofire Database (IMPD) project is to create a broadly-accessible online database of fire history derived from paleoenvironmental proxy data, which will enhance our understanding of the relationships between fire and climate (drought in particular) and provide a basis for long-term fire predictions.

The NOAA Paleoclimatology Program has been awarded funds by the Environmental Services Data and Information Management (ESDIM) and Climate Change Data and Detection (CCDD) programs for this project. The USDA Forest Service and the University of Arizona's Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research have convened an Advisory Board to work with the fire history community and help guide the NOAA Paleoclimatology Program in the development and maintenance of the database.

What's Hot! A quick listing of recent contributions, upcoming events, and other items related to the IMPD.

Introduction to Fire History Reconstruction

Contributing Data

• Tree-ring Based Fire Histories
• Sediment-based Charcoal Records

Obtaining Data

• Fire History Search Engine (Download data archived before February 10, 2005)
• Download Recent Paleofire Data (Contributions since February 10, 2005)
• Browse, query, and download data from an interactive map via an ArcIMS GIS interface.
• Tree-ring based File Names and Formats
• Charcoal Sediment File Names and Formats

Additional Collaborating Institutions

• Rocky Mountain Tree-Ring Research, Inc.
• University of Tennessee's Laboratory of Tree-Ring Science
• University of Oregon's Environmental Change Research Group
• Illinois State Museum
• Fire Sciences Lab
• University of Utah's Earth Change Observatory
• Montana State University's Department of Earth Sciences
• University of Bern's Institute of Plant Sciences
• Fire Research And Management ExchangeSystem

Additional Fire Resources

• Global Fire Monitoring Center (GFMC)
• Forest Fire in the American Southwest: Putting the Pieces Together
• NOAA's Fire Weather Information Center