DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 1600Z August 17, 2013
UPDATE for 1825Z An area of light density smoke was added to the analysis to the Labrador Sea extending from Newfoundland to Greenland as well as an extension of light density smoke in the US to cover Texas to the Gulf of Mexico. Smoke: Midwest/Great Lakes/Northeast: An area of thin density smoke is visible over the US extending from central Missouri, over Lake Michigan, across Toronto, and as far east as Maine/New Brunswick. Additional states affected are Illinois, Michigan, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Quebec. The origin of this smoke is most likely from the wildfires that are currently burning in the western US, which is blowing eastward towards the Atlantic Ocean. Western US: A large area of thin to moderate density smoke is visible over much of the western US. Two major areas of wildfires are producing smoke in both northern California and Idaho (with help from Utah). Areas affected include northern California, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, Texas, and eastern Arizona. The areas containing the highest concentrations of smoke are the Rockies and the Northern Plains. Canada: An area of light density smoke entering the Great Lakes area from the border of Canada. Areas affected included Manitoba, Ontario, Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin, and the Great Lakes. A large area of moderate density smoke is visible over much of the NW Territories, Nunavut, and Hudson Bay. Due to a large amount of cloud cover in the Canadian sector, it is difficult to define the exact areas of smoke concentration and their density. Oegerle THIS TEXT PRODUCT IS PRIMARILY INTENDED TO DESCRIBE SIGNIFICANT AREAS OF 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