DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0245Z August 22, 2014
SMOKE: Eastern Canada/Hudson Bay: A large high pressure system remains over eastern Hudson Bay/Western Quebec, with light density smoke rotating throughout the anticyclone. The entire area encompasses Hudson Bay, Quebec and central Labrador, Ontario, and northeastern Manitoba. The smoke most likely originates from wildfires located to the west in Northwest Territories, although a few newer wildfires appearing in Ontario are producing smoke that is currently being wrapped up in the anticyclone. Western/Northern Canada: Wildfire complexes in NW Territories continue to burn and produce light to heavy density smoke, drifting southward into northeastern British Columbia, northern Alberta, and northern Saskatchewan. The smoke remains heaviest close to the fire sources through NW Territories and northern Alberta. Light density remnant smoke is also visible moving south over the Beaufort Sea into northern NW Territories and northwestern Nunavut. British Columbia: Moderate to dense smoke is visible drifting slowly southward over southern British Columbia, originating from the wildfires occurring in BC. Western U.S: Multiple wildfires across northern California and in western Oregon are producing moderate to heavy density smoke, moving eastward across the aforementioned states. A broader area of light density smoke is also visible moving over the coastline of Washington, Oregon, and northern California. Northern Plains: An area of light density smoke is visible over the Dakotas and into southern Saskatchewan/Manitoba, although the full extent of the smoke to the north and west is obscured by clouds across the region. This smoke originates from the wildfires occurring through the NW Territories. DUST: A large plume of Saharan dust is visible through the western Gulf of Mexico, moving northward into southern Texas and across the southern/central Plains, into central portions of the Mississippi Valley and into the Ohio Valley. Heeps 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.ospo.noaa.gov/Products/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