DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 1830Z April 11, 2008

Gulf of Mexico:
A large area of thin to moderately dense smoke stretches from southeastern
Mexico, the Yucatan Peninsula, and western Central America northward
across the Bay of Campeche to the western Gulf of Mexico just off the
southeastern Texas and southwestern Louisiana coast. This northward
moving smoke was due to ongoing seasonal fires burning across southern
and southeastern Mexico as well as portions of Central America.

Eastern Texas to the Great Lakes Region:
A long swath of thin to even moderately dense blowing dust which
originated from eastern New Mexico and western Texas yesterday was visible
in morning satellite imagery (especially GOES-West visible imagery)
stretching from eastern Texas and Louisiana northward across central and
eastern Arkansas, northwestern Mississippi, western Tennessee, central and
eastern Illinois, and Indiana to the Great Lakes region around Wisconsin
and Michigan where it became difficult to see due to cloud cover.

Southeastern US:
Several developing localized smoke plumes were beginning to show up
in visible imagery early this afternoon over northern Florida, eastern
Georgia, and eastern South Carolina.

JS

Unless otherwise indicated:

Areas of smoke are analyzed using GOES-EAST and GOES-WEST Visible satellite imagery.

Only a general description of areas of smoke or significant smoke plumes will be analyzed.

A quantitative assessment of the density/amount of particulate or the vertical distribution is not included.

Widespread cloudiness may prevent the detection of smoke even from significant fires.