DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0200Z APRIL 2, 2009
South Central US: Most of the fires which were producing smoke visible in satellite imagery were observed over central and eastern Texas, Arkansas, and southern Missouri. The majority of these plumes were moving in a northerly direction. Cloudiness also moved across portions of the Southern and Central Plains during the afternoon which prevented additional smoke detection in satellite imagery. For more graphical information concerning these smoke plumes please refer to the website links below. Gulf of Mexico: A large mass of haze which likely contains thin smoke from the ongoing seasonal fires burning in Mexico and Central America spread northward into the central and northeastern Gulf of Mexico just off the coast of the Florida panhandle. Another patch of thin smoke, most likely from the seasonal fires in Cuba drifted to the north-northwest across the Florida Keys and along the southwestern and western coast of Florida. New Mexico/Western Texas: A swath of blowing dust/sand was evident in satellite imagery this afternoon extending from the White Sands region of south central New Mexico northeastward to near the Texas-New Mexico border. Cloudiness in the region interfered with additional detection of blowing dust/sand in satellite imagery. JS 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.ssd.noaa.gov/PS/FIRE/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