Monday, May 30, 2011

DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 1700Z May 30, 2011


Western Canada/Alaska/Pacific Northwest:
A large area of light, remnant smoke can be seen from central/northern
Saskatchewan westward through Alberta/central British Columbia northward
into the Northwest Territories/Yukon and northern/eastern Alaska. A
smaller band of light smoke can be seen stretching to the south and
east through the Pacific Northwest and moving through Nevada. Most
of this smoke is coming from the wildfires that continue to burn in
northern Alberta where heavy, dense smoke can be seen through northern
and central Alberta into Saskatchewan. Further to the north through
Alaska and northwest Canada, wildfires that are burning through Alaska
and western Yukon are contributing to the remnant smoke as well as a
more moderately dense area in southeast Alaska. There is also a band of
moderate smoke moving southward from the Arctic through northern Alaska
and Yukon which could be from the Alberta fires or could be smoke and/or
other aerosols coming from near the Kamchatka Peninsula.


Central US/Northern Mexico/Western Gulf of Mexico:
A large area of light smoke can be seen in this morning's imagery from
northern Mexico through Texas and into the central Plains stretching as
far east as Illinois. This is from the continued fires through Mexico and
Central America as well as more recent fires through the southwest. There
is also a possibility that blowing dust from yesterday evening could
be mixing in with smoke as well today as surface winds continue to be
strong out of the south/southwest.

East Coast:
A patch of thin smoke could be seen off the Mid-Atlantic and New England
coast today as remnant smoke that is coming up through the Central Plains
from Mexico is getting rotate counter-clockwise around the High pressure
over the eastern US. Smoke could also be mixed with haze over this region
as well.

Belge


THIS TEXT PRODUCT IS PRIMARILY INTENDED TO DESCRIBE SIGNIFICANT
AREAS SMOKE ASSOCIATED WITH ACTIVE FIRES AND SMOKE WHICH HAS BECOME
DETACHED FROM THE FIRES AND DRIFTED SOME DISTANCE AWAY FROM THE SOURCE
FIRE..TYPICALLY OVER THE COURSE OF ONE OR MORE DAYS. AREAS OF BLOWING DUST
ARE ALSO DESCRIBED. USERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO VIEW A GRAPHIC DEPICTION OF
THESE AND OTHER PLUMES WHICH ARE LESS EXTENSIVE AND STILL ATTACHED TO
THE SOURCE FIRE 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
ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS REGARDING THIS PRODUCT SHOULD BE SENT TO
SSDFireTeam@noaa.gov

 


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.