DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0300Z July 10, 2007
Western US: A large area of moderately dense to dense smoke from a tremendous number of wildfires burning across the Western US was seen before sunset roughly in an arc shaped region extending from a large blaze in Santa Barbara county in California northward through much of interior central California and extending off the coast. Dense to very dense smoke covers most of northern California due to a fire in Plumas county. The plume then continues to the east, covering the southeast half of Oregon, with very dense smoke from a number of blazes in northwest Harney county. The plume extends across southern Idaho where several fires along the southern tier of the state contribute to the smoke and merge with additional smoke from fires over northern Nevada near Elko and Winnemucca. The plume then drops to the south and covers most of western Colorado and eastern Utah. Numerous large fires in southwest Utah are contributing very dense smoke that is moving to the east. The smoke finally drops into western New Mexico, where it is mainly thin, and northeast Arizona. A large blaze in northwest Mohave county Arizona is also producing very dense smoke that is fanning out to the north and east. Separately, two fires in central Idaho in southern Idaho and northern Valley counties are producing plumes of moderately dense smoke that are drifting to the southeast. Texas/Louisiana and the Gulf Coast: An area of residual smoke is seen in roughly an arc across parts of central and east Texas and extending into Louisiana. The smoke stretches from central Texas near Abilene south-southeast toward Corpus Christi and then arcs back to the northeast along the coast and into central Louisiana. The plume is mainly light but there are patches of moderately thick smoke that were seen east of San Antonio and also along the upper Texas Coast into central Louisiana. Alaska/Northwest Territories: Numerous fires are scattered along much of the length of the Yukon Valley from north of Bethel to Galena to Tanana to Eagle. The fires that are currently producing the most dense smoke that can be seen are near Tanana and east of Fort Yukon. a broad band of residual smoke is also seen extending from near Ambler to the southwest across Norton Sound and into the Bering Sea. Another area of residual smoke is seen over the northern Yukon Territory extending north into the Arctic Ocean. A fire to the southeast of Great Bear Lake is producing a moderately dense plume of smoke that is drifting slowly to the east and southeast. Ruminski