Thursday, July 12, 2007

DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0115Z July 13, 2007

Northern US Great Plains/Red River Basin:
An area of dense smoke aloft from yesterday's central Manitoba fire
(that is currently obscured by clouds) continues to drop south out of
Canada from the southern portions of Lake Manitoba across ext E ND to
the SD/MN/ND intersection where it bends more SE (around the periphery
of the large cyclone over Hudson Bay) across SE MN into NE IA.

NW US:
Thin smoke continues to be seen between breaks in the clouds ahead of
a an upper level shear line that extends from WA to CO.  The thin smoke
can be seen across E WA/N ID/E ID and sections of SW WY.

Montana:
The Fool Creek fire and the fire along the Lewis and Clark/Flathead/Powell
county intersection are producing moderately dense smoke that is moving
north along the spine of the mountains before being picked up by higher
level winds and moved toward the E covering Teton and Pondera and northern
portions of Cascade county.

Idaho:
The Tongue Complex in SW ID is producing moderately dense smoke that is
moving NNE to the rim of the Columbia Plateau and is about 25km wide.

Oregon:
The Egley and Calamity Complexes in the Ochoco NF are producing very
dense smoke that is moving due N centered along the western Grant county
line as far north as Hardman,OR in S Morrow county.  The plume is quite
wide due to the large E-W extent of the fires... which is on average 85km
(with the eastern boundary around US-395).

California(Nevada):
The Antelope Complex is producing moderate smoke that is moving NE across
Honey Dry Lake where it begins to thin out and combine with a large fan
of thin smoke from the Balls Canyon fire that is moving NE covering most
of Washoe county NV (except extreme north portion).
The Zaca fire is producing a large amount of very dense smoke that as
remained in the very low levels along the forest with some beginning
to creep down the Southern slopes into the Santa Barbera area and as
far east as Ventura.  Some smoke has risen aloft to be directed more
northward in pockets of very dense smoke that are connected to the main
smoke plume by tendrils of thin smoke that and are currently crossing
the Temblor Range into main Valley.

Arizona:
The Birdie fire is producing a plume of moderate smoke that is moving
SE about 73km to the Gila county line with an average width of 22km.


N Alberta:
Reactivation of the fires in the western portions of Wood Buffalo NP
and a fire near Lake Wetzel are combining together in a moderate to
dense fan of smoke that fans from due E to SE with smoke reaching the
Sask./Alberta province line from 57.7N north to central Lake Athabasca.

NW Territories:
A string of E to W fires along the Taltson River (SE of Great Slave Lake)
are producing moderate to dense smoke particular the fire near 62N 108.4E.
The smoke is moving SE behind a SW to NE line of thunderstorms extending
some 170km SE with an average width of 50km.

Gallina

 


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.