The RFS is sparking a number of fires this week in the name of research as it investigates fire behaviour and how fast it will spread in greener areas.

The burns are part of a national project with researchers from the Country Fire Authority in Victoria, CSIRO, and Queensland Fire and Rescue.

"It's been very successful so far," NSW RFS fire behaviour analyst, Inspector Laurence McCoy, said yesterday.

"We have conducted three pairs of experimental burns, and those burns we're getting some very good data from them."

Yesterday's hot and windy conditions were perfect for the experiment. Much of the fire activity will be conducted under different conditions in the Moore Creek area for the rest of the week, and another site near the Tamworth airport has also been selected.

"[The research] may help to open up more opportunities to do prescribed burning or hazard reductions in areas where we previously thought fire wouldn't spread in," Inspector McCoy said.

"It will also provide more data in validating fire behaviour models on how fast it spreads, particu-larly at the lower ends of the curing cycles, when the grass is greener."

About 15 researchers and 20 firefighters, mostly local, are helping with the experiments.

They could run up to March 12, depending on conditions.

CSIRO lead researcher Miguel Cruz said experiments in Victoria in 2013 had shown that previous understandings of the impact of grass-curing on fire propagation was deficient.

"The results from the Victorian experiments needed to be validated in distinct grasslands, namely the characteristics in NSW," Dr Cruz said.

The RFS says contingencies including fire breaks and firefighting resources were in place to ensure no blazes got out of hand.