Fire History Reconstruction from Sandia Mountains Tree Rings

NOAA/WDS Paleoclimatology archives fire history data derived from tree rings at Pino Canyon in the Sandia Mountains, New Mexico. The dataset covers fire events from 350 to -43 calendar years before present. It is maintained by the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Use Cases

• Reconstruct historical fire frequency and severity using tree-ring fire scar data.
• Analyze long-term climate-fire relationships by correlating fire event years with paleoclimate proxies.
• Model fire return intervals for the Sandia Mountains region based on dated fire events.
• Validate and calibrate regional fire history models using the site-specific chronology.

Strengths

• Temporal coverage spans approximately 393 years (350 to -43 BP).
• Data is curated and archived by the authoritative NOAA NCEI World Data Service.

Limitations

• Data is temporally stale, last updated in 1993.
• Geographic scope is limited to a single site (Pino Canyon).
• Sample size and specific record counts are unknown.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) World Data Service for Paleoclimatology.

Collection Method

Tree-ring analysis (dendrochronology) for fire scar dating.

Time Range

350 to -43 calendar years before present.

Freshness

null

Geography

Pino Canyon, Sandia Mountains, New Mexico, United States of America.