A prescribed burn at Vandenberg Air Force Base is putting up a huge head of smoke this afternoon.

Base officials announced Monday that the 30th Civil Engineer Squadron's Fire Protection Flight would conduct two separate burns, from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. through Nov. 13.

The Grant Burn consists of 303 acres north of San Antonio Road West and east of the Marshallia Ranch Golf Course.

The objective of the burn is to provide data for managing the impact on local and regional air quality during a burn.

The Airfield Burn consists of 395 acres northwest of the airfield runway.

The objective of that burn is to eliminate invasive plant species such as pampas grass and other vegetation from the airfield to properly maintain the required 1,000-foot centerline clearance.