DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0030Z OCTOBER 27, 2007
Southern California fires (smoke across SW US): Many large fires hotspots can still be detected well and the very strong fires including the Poomacha, Santiago, Harris, and Witch are producing very dense smoke plumes that extend due North covering all of the Santa Ana range up to S San Bernardino county. A second pocket of dense smoke is further downstream from over the central Colorado River over NW AZ and southern tip of NV and southern counties of UT. The overall plume of thin or moderately dense smoke covers a large portion of the SW of the US including: CA and coastal waters from the Mexico boarder norther to 37N (east of the Sierra Nevada) and 38N within the Central Valley, along the coastal mtns the smoke extends to the southern portions of Monterey Bay and extend about 50km offshore down to the Catalina Islands...where clouds from an approaching upper level system are streaming into the area. In NV: the most dense smoke is relegated to Clark county, but thin smoke extends as far north as northern Nye county around 39N. UT: Nearly all of UT south of the Unita Mtns is covered with thin to moderate smoke. AZ: Dense smoke covers all of NW AZ including all of La Paz and Mojave counties with portions of far NE Coconino being covered by thin to moderate smoke. NW Louisiana/NE Texas: A few fires across NE TX and NW LA are producing thin smoke that mainly has drifted due east from covering a large portion of NE LA. Coastal Texas and Louisiana: Numerous fires along the coastal counties of LA and TX from Vermillion Bay to San Antonio Bay have produced thin to moderate smoke plumes that have been drifting into the Gulf of Mexico (moving due south in LA, and SW from TX fires). Most of the plumes are about 20km wide and extend around 40-60km from the source. Additionally, smoke from last nights fires in the same area has remained very stationary over the Gulf of Mexico between 28.5N to 26N and 96W to 94W (NW of the cloudy region in the central Gulf). Colorado: A fire south of Vallecito Res. (N of US-160) in far eastern La Plata county is producing a plume of thin to moderately dense smoke that is moving NE up the Los Pinos River valley then across covering all of S Hinsdale county to the Rio Grande county line. A fire most likely on the the souther portion of Fort Carson Mil. Res. produced a puff of moderate smoke that has drifted NW into Teller county to around Pikes Peak. New Mexico: A small fire in S Taos county near Pilar is producing a small thin plume that is moving SSE down the valley across and is contained fully within Taos county. A fire near Canjilon in central Rio Arriba county is producing thin smoke that is moving SE almost to the location of the previously described “Pilar” fire. This plume is also mixing with smoke from the next fire described below. This fire is proudcing a plume of moderate smoke that is moving SE from a location along the Continental Divide around Cerza Canyon. The plume is about 17km wide and extends about 70km from the source within Rio Arriba county. Arizona: A fire along the AZ/NM state line (but more in AZ) in the Chuska Mtns of N Apache county is moving ENE into NM and extends clear across central San Juan county in a 22km wide plume that fans out a the leading edge (entering S Rio Arriba and ext NW Sandoval county). The plume is of moderate density and extends nearly 150km. A large fire near North Rim near AZ-67 north of Cape Royal on the Grand Canyon is producing a very dense smoke plume that is moving NE and extends about 92km (almost to the Coconino/Navajo county line and Utah State line). The plume is about 34km wide and is at the southern edge of the large Southern California smoke plume described above. A fire in far western Coconino county (NE of Natural Bridge) is producing moderate smoke that can be seen through the moderate smoke of the southern California fires moving north to around the Colorado River. A fire in the Coconino Nat'l Forest in far Southeast Coconino counties is producing dense smoke that is moving NE and extends aobut 63km into Navajo county near US-40. The plume is about 15km wide and is beginning to mix with smoke from the next described fires. A fire in far northern Gila county (NE of Payson) is producing very dense smoke that is taking on a V shape in the NNE and ENE directions but is also expanding S and SW as it grows. This area covers a large portion of NE Gila county and SE Coconino county with a bit starting to move into SW Navajo county. A small sand storm of thin to moderate density is blowing across the Painted Desert from eastern Coconino county into central Navajo county between Sand Springs and Tees Toh. Oregon: Multiple agricultural fires along and west of the Coastal Range within far W Yamhill, Lincoln, Benton, W Lane, Coos and Curry county are producing thin (about 5-7km wide) plumes of thin to moderate smoke that extend great distance SW out into the Pacific Ocean. Three (3) similar fires east of the Willemette River Valley near Clearwater in NW Douglas county, near Nimrod in west central Lane county and near Upper Soda in central Linn county are producing very thin plumes of thin smoke that extend due west and reach the Coastal Range. These plume are about 3-6km wide on average. Idaho: Small fires acorss SW Shoshone, Benewah, Latah, far NW Idaho, and W Clearwater are producing moderate smoke that extends SW covering nearly all of Benewah, Nez Pierce, and Latah counties (along with downstream portions of the larger counites of Clearwater, NW Idaho. Each plume is about 10km and 30km long. British Columbia: Large amounts of fires in the central portion of BC are producing small puffs/plumes of smoke that do not extend far from their sources (15-25km) but funnel into the valleys filling all with moderate smoke. Gallina