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NWCG Glossary of Wildland Fire (PMS 205)

Term Steward Status Definition
sunset and sunrise IWSC Incident Weather Subcommittee Approved The mean solar times of sunset and sunrise as published in the Nautical Almanac, converted to local standard time for the locality concerned.
superficial burn SRC Safety/Risk Management Committee Approved A minor thermal burn involving the outer layer of skin, i.e. 'a sunburn'. It is characterized by reddening of the skin and perhaps some swelling without blisters.
superfog SMSC Smoke Subcommittee Approved An extremely dense surface fog (water droplets suspended in the atmosphere) at the site of combustion that reduces visibility to less than three meters (ten feet).
supervisor QMC Qualifications Management Committee, NISC NIMS Integration Subcommittee Approved The ICS title for an individual responsible for a division or group.
supplemental fire department resources FBC Finance/Business Management Committee Approved Overhead tied to a local fire department, generally by agreement, who are mobilized primarily for response to incidents or wildland fires outside their district or mutual aid zone. Supplemental fire department resources are not a permanent part of the local fire organization and are not required to attend scheduled training, meetings, etc. of the department staff. 
supplies ETSC Equipment/Technology Subcommittee Approved Minor items of equipment and all expendable items assigned to an incident.
Supply Unit QMC Qualifications Management Committee, NISC NIMS Integration Subcommittee Approved Supply Unit staff order, receive, process, store, inventory, and distribute all incident-related supplies. The Supply Unit staff are responsible for all off-incident ordering.
Support Branch QMC Qualifications Management Committee, NISC NIMS Integration Subcommittee Approved A branch within the logistics section responsible for providing personnel, equipment and supplies to support incident operations. Includes the supply, facilities and ground support units.
support costs FBC Finance/Business Management Committee Approved On-incident costs and off-incident costs. On-incident costs include caterer, shower units, mobile commissary, cache supplies, and materials, etc. Off-incident costs include expanded dispatch, buying teams, administrative payment teams, cache personnel, area command, transportation to/from incident, etc. 
support resources wfnwcgorg:ICSC Approved Non-tactical resources under the supervision of the logistics, planning, finance/administration sections or the command staff.
supporting agency wfnwcgorg:ICSC Approved An agency providing suppression or other support and resource assistance to a protecting agency.
supporting technologies IMC Integration Management Committee, DCSC Dispatch Coordination Subcommittee Approved Any technology which may be used to support NIIMS. Examples of these technologies include GIS mapping, infrared technology, NFDRS, communications, dispatch coordination, and national cache system.
suppress a fire IOSC Incident Operations Subcommittee Approved see: Suppression
suppressant ETSC Equipment/Technology Subcommittee Approved An agent that extinguishes the flaming and glowing phases of combustion by direct application to the burning fuel.
suppression FMB Fire Management Board Approved All the work to extinguish or limit wildland fire spread.
suppression crew IOSC Incident Operations Subcommittee Approved Two or more firefighters stationed at a strategic location for initial action on fires. Duties are essentially the same as those of individual firefighters.
suppression firing IOSC Incident Operations Subcommittee Archived Intentional application of fire to speed up or strengthen fire suppression action on wildfires. Types of suppression firing include burning out, counter firing, and strip burning.
surface area-to-volume ratio IWSC Incident Weather Subcommittee Approved The ratio between the surface area of an object, such as a fuel particle, to its volume. The smaller the particle, the more quickly it can become wet, dry out, or become heated to combustion temperature during a fire.
surface fire FMSC Fuels Management Subcommittee Approved Fire that burns loose debris on the surface, which includes dead branches, leaves, and low vegetation.
surface fuel FMSC Fuels Management Subcommittee Approved Fuels lying on or near the surface of the ground, consisting of leaf and needle litter, dead branch material, downed logs, bark, tree cones, and low stature living plants.
surface high IWSC Incident Weather Subcommittee Approved An area on the earth's surface where atmospheric pressure is at a relative maximum. Winds blow clockwise around highs in the Northern Hemisphere but, due to friction with the earth's face, tend to cross constant pressure lines away from the high center. Air is usually subsiding above a surface high. This causes warming due to air compression. This results in stable atmospheric conditions and light surface winds. 
surface low IWSC Incident Weather Subcommittee Approved An area on the earth's surface where atmospheric pressure is at a relative minimum. Winds blow counter-clockwise around lows in the Northern Hemisphere but, due to friction with the earth's surface, tend to cross constant pressure lines toward the low center. Upon converging into the low's center, air currents are forced to rise. As air rises it cools due to expansion. Cooling reduces its capacity to hold moisture; so cloudiness and precipitation are common in lows. If a low center intensifies sufficiently it will take on the characteristics of a storm center with precipitation and strong winds.
surface tension ETSC Equipment/Technology Subcommittee Approved The elastic-like force at the surface of a liquid, tending to minimize the surface area and causing drops to form. Expressed as Newtons per meter or dynes per centimeter (1 Newton/m=1,000 dynes/cm).
surface wind IWSC Incident Weather Subcommittee Approved Wind measured at a surface observing station, customarily at some distance (usually 20 feet) above the average vegetative surface to minimize the distorting effects of local obstacles and terrain.
surfactant ETSC Equipment/Technology Subcommittee Approved A surface active agent; any wetting agent. A formulation which, when added to water in proper amounts, will materially reduce the surface tension of the water and increase penetration and spreading abilities of the water.
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