DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0300Z JULY 8, 2008
Eastern North Carolina/Middle Atlantic Coast: Thin to perhaps locally moderately dense smoke from the long burning Evans Fire in eastern North Carolina was visible moving to the northeast across the northeastern Outer Banks and offshore. California: Numerous fires in northern California were emitting moderately dense to dense smoke which spread mainly in a south and southwestward direction during the afternoon. However, some of the smoke from the fires in northeastern California began to spread to the east-northeast as well toward the northern and central Sierras (including the Lake Tahoe/Reno area) during the late afternoon. The moderately dense to dense smoke covered much of northern and central California and also extended offshore. Moderately dense to dense smoke from the fires in Monterey County appeared to move more to the southwest and offshore during the day. Smoke from the fires in Santa Barbara County was not nearly as visible in satellite imagery as it had been in previous days. It also was difficult to see in the imagery due to low clouds along and off the coast and due to more smoke moving in from the east from the large Kern County fire. Of all the fires in California, the aformentioned Kern County fire in south central California was emitting the largest smoke plume. This very dense plume spread to the west during the day crossing over Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties. Pacific Northwest to the Northern Plains: Leftover smoke primarily from the California fires was visible extending from the Pacific Northwest across Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana, to the Dakotas and Minnesota. Within this large area, patches of moderately dense smoke was seen with the thickest smoke located over eastern Oregon and southwestern Idaho. It was not known what level in the atmosphere the smoke existed. Some residual thin smoke was also visible over northern Nevada and northern Utah as well as off the Pacific Northwest coast. Central Canada: Moderately dense to locally dense smoke from fire located near Lake Athabasca in northwestern Saskatchewan Province was detected moving to the west. Farther to the northwest, fires to the west of Great Slave Lake were also producing moderately dense to locally dense smoke plumes which were moving to the northwest. Large swaths of thin smoke which were visible earlier this morning across south central and north central Canada (likely due to the above mentioned Canadian fires) were no longer seen this evening. Alaska/Northwestern Canada: Several fires in east central Alaska were emitting moderately dense to dense smoke which moved to the south. Earlier this morning a larger mass of thin to moderately dense smoke was seen across much of northeastern Alaska and extreme northwestern Canada extending northward into the Arctic. To the west, a growing fire in west central Alaska was responsible for a moderately dense to dense smoke plume which moved to the north-northeast. JS