DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0300Z June 27, 2015
SMOKE Alaska/Canada/Northern Plains: An expansive area of light to heavy density remnant smoke was observed throughout Alaska, Canada and the Northern Plains this afternoon/evening. This large area of remnant smoke formed from many wildfires in southwestern/central Alaska that produced moderate to heavy smoke which moved eastward into Yukon, north of the Mackenzie mountain range, then to the southeast into the Northwest Territories and merged with smoke that originated from wildfires in northern Saskatchewan, northern Alberta and the Northwest Territories. Optically thick remnant smoke was seen encompassing the Northwest Territories, northeast Saskatchewan, and northern Manitoba. This area of heavy smoke became more diffuse as the remnant smoke was seen moving from Saskatchewan southeastward into Manitoba, the eastern portions of the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Iowa. Light to moderate density remnant smoke was also seen over Nunavut, Hudson Bay, Ontario, and western Quebec. Although the optically thick area of smoke could be seen moving into this region from the west-northwest. Several isolated moderate density smoke plumes were seen in northeastern British Columbia, and northern Alberta and were moving to the east. Southwestern US/Pacific Northwest: An area of light to moderate density remnant smoke was seen over the southwestern US moving north into Oregon and spilling eastward into Idaho. The majority of this smoke originated from three wildfires, which were comprised of a wildfire called Washington located south of Lake Tahoe in California, a wildfire called Lake fire in San Bernardino county California and another wildfire in northwestern Baja. Clouds covering California and Nevada currently obscure the two wildfires in California but the wildfire in Baja continues to produce light to moderate density smoke to the northwest. Another light to moderate density smoke plume could be seen moving to the west from a wildfire in the southern portions of Coconino county Arizona. DUST Southeast US: An area of heavy density Saharan dust is visible moving eastward through the southeast US affecting Virginia, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina as it moves offshore into the Atlantic Ocean. The full extent of this area of dust is difficult to determine due to cloud coverage from multiple areas of convection. -Cronin 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