Software

Current Version

Prometheus 2021.12.03 Log4J Safe for 64-bit Windows operating systems was released December 23, 2021.

Important Installation Instructions

  • Install all software prerequistes on a 64-bit Windows computer that meets or exceeds minimum system requirements and perform a system restart.
  • Log on to your computer as a system administrator.
  • Uninstall any previous version of the Prometheus application from your computer.
  • Close all open applications and run prometheus_2021.12.03.exe [EXE - 56 MB]. A Setup Wizard will guide you through the installation.

Known Issues

  • Some folks are getting an Intel Error and are unable to find the download - Intel removed it from their site.




  • you can grab the fix from here on our site:
  • Some references to old versions are found in the help.

Troubleshooting Checklist

  • Verify your computer is running a 64-bit Windows operating system.
  • Verify that you installed all the prerequisites as per the Installer.
  • Verify your computer was restarted after installing everything.
  • Verify that an administrator account was used to install Prometheus.

Sample Data Set

Click the following link to download a sample data set for the 2001 Dogrib fire. The data set contains a README document, model input files, and a an example fire growth model project.

Previous Releases

Your computer must meet or exceed the following system requirements in order to install and use the Prometheus application and COM.

Requirement Minimum Recommended
Operating System* 64-bit Windows 7 or
Windows Server 2008
64-bit Windows 10 or
Windows Server 2008 R2
Microsoft Software .NET Framework 4.6
and
Visual C++ 2017 Redistributable (x64)
.NET Framework 4.7
and
Visual C++ 2017 Redistributable (x64)
Oracle Software Java 8.0 for Windows (x64)
(Update 151)
Java 8.0 for Windows (x64)
(Update 191)
Intel® Software 2019 C++ Redistributable Library for Windows (x64)
(Initial Release: 19.0.117)
2019 C++ Redistributable Library for Windows (x64)
(Update 1: 19.1.144)
Processors 4 cores 4 hyper-threading cores
RAM 6 GB 12 GB
Hard Drive 5 GB 500 GB
Screen Resolution 1280 x 720 1600 x 1024

*32-bit operating systems are not supported.

Changes in Prometheus 2021.12.03

New Features

  • Coming Soon.

Bug Fixes

  • Coming Soon.

Changes in Prometheus 6.2.4

New Features

  • Updated text in the About box to acknowledge financial and in-kind support provided by agencies other than Alberta Forestry, Parks and Tourism.
  • Removed support for the Windows Vista operating system and updated minimum software requirements to Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6, Microsoft Visual C++ 2017 Redistributable, Intel C++ 2019 Redistributable library 19.0.117, and Java 8.0 Update 151 for Windows (x64).
  • Removed the check box option to run Prometheus from the last Install Wizard dialog. The last dialog now finishes the installer without running Prometheus.
  • Added Hourly Initial Spread Index (HISI) to the scenario Burning Condtions tab and changed the format for Start and End times from H to H:M:S.
  • Deprecated the *.lut file extension for importing and exporting fuel lookup tables. The file type options for lookup tables now include *.csv and *.txt.
  • Created a new O-1a/O-1b fuel type. The O-1a/O-1b fuel type allows for transition between seasonal grass phenology states (matted versus standing) within a scenario without the need for a fuel grid reclassification.
  • Added a table to the Scenario Fire Behavior tab which allows specification of grass curing as a percentage across multiple start and end dates. The table allows for grass curing to transition throughout a scenario simulation. Previously, a single grass curing value was applied to the entire duration of a scenario simulation. Defaults values for this table are set under the Prometheus Options Fire Behavior tab.
  • Added standing grass start and end dates to the Scenario Fire Behavior tab. Standing grass phenology is applied to a scenario simulation between the specified start and end dates where the O-1a/O-1b fuel type has been used in the associated fuel grid. Default start and end dates for grass curing are set under the Prometheus Options Fire Behavior tab.
  • Replaced the green-up switch in the Scenario Fire Behavior tab with start and end dates. Green-up (leaf-on) conditions are now applied to the D-1/D-2, M-1/M-2 and M-3/M-4 fuel types between specified start and end dates as opposed to being exclusivly ON/OFF throughout a scearnio simulation. Default start and end dates for green-up are set under the Prometheus Options Fire Behavior tab.
  • Re-ordered green-up attributes in the Map Query, added a grass phenology attribute to display the scenario status of the O-1a/O-b fuel type (matted versus standing), and changed the Map Query value for green-up from Yes/No to Leaf-on/Leaf-off.
  • Added a routine to scan an elevation grid input for NoData. Prometheus now attempts to fill any NoData detected in the elevation grid using bilinear interpolation. Elevation NoData values are only interpolated and filled where NoData values do not exist in the fuel grid. NoData values that cannot be interpolated are filled with the median elevation grid value. Warning messages appear when this routine is applied.
  • Added support (where appropriate) for importing landscape grid files as 1, 2 or 4 byte unsigned integers, 2 or 4 byte signed integers, and 4 or 8 byte floating point values. Fuel and green-up grid imports are limited to unsigned and signed integer formats.
  • Set the DATUM option for the OGRSpatialReference::IsSame function to IGNORE. This function is used to check for matching projection information when importing landscape grid inputs. Previously the DATUM option was not set and resulted in an error message that prevented the import of landscape grid inputs when their datum information was not identical to the fuel grid datum.
  • Updated dialog options for importing weather stream from ensemble weather models. The percentile option for the GEM and NCEP ensembles was removed and replaced with a drop down to select a specific ensemble member.
  • Wind speed and wind direction values from multiple point locations (weather stations) are now converted to u and v vectors and spatially interpolated using Inverse Distance Weighting when any of the three fire weather interpolation options are applied to a scenario. This method replaces the former Thiessen polygon method for applying wind directions from multiple point locations to a scenario.
  • Modified the header order for weather stream exports and increased the level of precision for all numerical columns to two decimal places. Wind direction is the one exception that is still exported as an integer value. The header order for hourly weather stream exports is now:
    Hourly,Hour,Temp,RH,WS,WD,Precip,FFMC,DMC,DC,ISI,BUI,FWI,HFFMC,HISI,HFWI
    The header order for daily weather stream exports is now:
    Daily,Min_Temp,Max_Temp,Min_RH,Min_WS,Max_WS,WD,Precip,FFMC,DMC,DC,ISI,BUI,FWI
    The header order for noon standard weather stream exports is now:
    Date,Temp,RH,WS,WD,Precip,FFMC,DMC,DC,ISI,BUI,FWI
  • Renamed and reordered Scenario and Prometheus Options dialog tabs. The five Scenario dialog tabs are now: Scenario Inputs, Burning Conditions, Fire Weather, Fire Behavior, Propagation. The seven Prometheus Options dialog tabs are now: Configuration, Display, Burning Conditions, Fire Weather, Fire Behavior, Propagation, Statistics.
  • Added iterators to the Prometheus COM for exporting fire perimeters. COM applications can now specify what fire perimeter(s) to export using attributes from a simulation, eg.) scenario name, ignition name, date and time, ellapsed time, time step.
  • Added updates to the Prometheus help file.

Bug Fixes

  • Fixed a bug where a simulation could be started without a weather stream attached to the scenario. The simulation would then hang in a state where Pause and End options could not be used to terminate the simulation.
  • Fixed a bug where multiple weather stations could not be added to a scenario when one of the three Fire Weather Interpolation options were activated.
  • Fixed a bug where fire behavior grids exported from a scenario with the Inverse Distance Weighting method resulted in grids containing all zero values.
  • Fixed a bug where Prometheus crashed when any of the display units under Prometheus Options Display were changed and the OK button was pressed.
  • Fixed an issue related to filenames stored in Unicode and Prometheus working in ASCII. This issue resulted in the error message: Could not find "C". Now using "C:\ProgramData\CWFGM\Prometheus\Prometheus.clrtbl". This error message only appeared the first time Prometheus was opened after installation.

Prometheus: the Canadian Wildland Fire Growth Simulation Model

Version 6.2.4, Copyright © 2000 - 2019 The W.I.S.E. Development Team

Release date: January 13, 2019

Prometheus is a wildland fire growth simulation model first released in 2002 with support from fire management agencies, research institutes, and industry partners across Canada. A project steering committee was responsible for coordinating early development of the Prometheus application. Alberta Forestry, Parks and Tourism is now the lead agency and custodian with financial and in-kind support from the Canadian Forest Service, Government of Northwest Territories, Government of Ontario, and Scion Research. The Prometheus application and Prometheus COM are freeware software.