What Is Fire and Why Is It Important?

Fire is an ancient and vital ecological process that occurs in a wide variety of ecosystems. Many people have an innate fear of it, but under the right conditions it can be a beneficial and useful tool for land management. Prescribed fire, for instance, is a valuable tool used to manage wildlife habitat by removing accumulated debris and encouraging new growth. It also reduces competition from species that can’t tolerate fire, minimizes insect pests and diseases, and recycles nutrients back into the soil. Some species thrive in post-fire environments, such as the whitetail deer that requires open grasslands with shrubby patches to hunt, or the Karner blue butterfly caterpillar (Lycaeides melissa samuelis) which only hatches out of pine cones that have been melted by smoke.

The word “fire” describes a fascinating and mysterious phenomenon that is both magical and deadly. While it may appear solid and substantial, the flame is actually a formless vapor that exists only in the transitional space where combustion takes place. This invisible and enigmatic phenomenon produces light and heat by the energizing chemical reaction of combustible fuels with oxygen.

In addition to producing light and heat, fire is also the source of much of the energy used by humans on our planet. Most of the electricity generated by our power plants is a result of burning coal, oil and other fossil fuels in a process called combustion. Fire is also used in everyday cooking, and in cars by igniting a combustible fuel, such as gasoline, to generate heat.

Besides the fact that it’s a fascinating, scary and useful thing to observe, we use fire to help us survive and prosper in modern life. But it’s important to remember that even in a safe contained environment, such as a kitchen stove or a gas fired furnace, fire is dangerous and can quickly become uncontrolled.

Fire is most similar to a plasma, the fourth state of matter that forms when gaseous atoms and molecules lose their electrons and roam freely. Just like a plasma, fire is hot and incandescent but unlike a plasma it can’t sustain itself without an external source of energy. Fire’s need for external energy is essentially the reason why it can’t exist in air that’s saturated with water, which can smother the flame by choking out the oxygen it needs to burn.