DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0400Z August 04, 2009
Western Canada/Northwest US/Northern Plains and Midwest: Wildfires in Alaska, the Yukon Territory, and British Columbia had produced a large area of moderately dense to dense smoke. This smoke stretched from north of the Yukon Territory south across British Columbia/southern Alberta and the northwest/north central US. By this evening thin to moderately dense smoke had reached the western Great Lakes. Alaska: The great number of active wildfires in interior Alaska were producing a large area of moderately dense to dense smoke. This smoke had spread out covering much of central/north Alaska including the entire North Slope region. Arizona: An area of thin smoke was seen this evening over northeast Arizona. While there are active fires burning in parts of central and north central Arizona, it could not be determined if the smoke was remnant or from today's fires due to passing cloud cover. -Sheffler More information on the areas of smoke described above as well as others can be found at the locations listed below. THE FORMAT OF THIS TEXT PRODUCT IS BEING MODIFIED. IT WILL NO LONGER DESCRIBE THE VARIOUS PLUMES THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH ACTIVE FIRES. THESE PLUMES ARE DEPICTED IN VARIOUS GRAPHIC FORMATS ON OUR WEB SITE: JPEG: http://www.osdpd.noaa.gov/ml/land/hms.html GIS: http://www.firedetect.noaa.gov/viewer.htm KML: http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/PS/FIRE/kml.html THIS TEXT PRODUCT WILL CONTINUE TO DESCRIBE SIGNIFICANT AREAS OF SMOKE WHICH HAVE BECOME DETACHED FROM AND DRIFTED SOME DISTANCE AWAY FROM THE SOURCE FIRE, TYPICALLY OVER THE COURSE OF ONE OR MORE DAYS. IT WILL ALSO STILL INCLUDE DESCRIPTIONS OF BLOWING DUST. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS REGARDING THESE CHANGES OR THE SMOKE TEXT PRODUCT IN GENERAL SHOULD BE SENT TO SSDFireTeam@noaa.gov