Monday, August 15, 2005

DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THRU 0230Z August 16, 2005

Alaska/Canada/northern U.S.:
The widespread very large fires burning across Alaska are producing a
dense canopy of smoke covering a good portion of Alaska. The smoke has
also spread even farther westward than earlier today and extends well
across the Bering Sea and Bering Strait into eastern Russia. Smoke
from these fires has also been transported by mid/upper level winds
southeastward across British Columbia and over the southern tier of
Canada all the way into Quebec Province. Some of this smoke area also has
pushed into the northern U.S. stretching from Montana across the northern
Plains to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Additionally, scattered fires
over northeastern Oregon, southeastern Washington, north central Idaho,
and western Montana were responsible for significant smoke plumes which
were moving northeastward and eventually merging with the Alaskan
smoke area over Montana. Finally, a thin ribbon of detatched smoke,
likely originating from the fires over Oregon/Washington/Idaho/Montana,
was visible this evening from southern Montana/northern Wyoming to the
central Plains.

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.