DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0415Z July 16, 2015
SMOKE Canada/Northern US/Atlantic Ocean: A large area of light to heavy density smoke stretches across Alberta, Saskatchewan and into the southern sections of the Northwest Territory. Another area extends across Nunavut south into northeast Manitoba, most of Ontario and into the Great Lakes region. Medium-density smoke stretches over northwest regions of Saskatchewan and a small section of east central Alberta. Another medium-density smoke region extends over the western Hudson Bay and south into southern Ontario and the Great Lakes region. The heaviest smoke is visible around several complexes of wildfires located in central Saskatchewan moving east into Manitoba, as well in NW Territories moving north. Lighter density smoke stretches as far south as northeast Iowa, northern Illinois and as far east as western Quebec and over most of Michigan. The third and final area of smoke seen in satellite imagery extends across the Canadian Maritimes and into the Atlantic Ocean. Pacific NW: Plumes of light density smoke is visible moving SE from Oregon and California. This smoke is also seen entering Idaho and Nevada. This smoke is remnant from Alaska/Canada but also from the wildfires that have been burning in Oregon. Alaska: Light to medium-density smoke from several large wildfires concentrated across central Alaska is visible covering most of northern/central Alaska. The smoke extends north into the Beaufort Sea and west into the eastern Chukchi Sea. The heavier density smoke is seen near the concentration of wildfire complexes there with another larger area to the north of these wildfires. DUST: Atlantic Ocean/Caribbean/Gulf of Mexico/Southeast US: Large area of Saharan dust is moving westward across the Atlantic, the Caribbean and into the southern Gulf of Mexico. The dust is of light density across the southern Gulf of Mexico and along the Mexico coastline. Also seen in imagery is dust moving across the southeast and off the Atlantic coast. California/Baja/Arizona: An area of blowing dust is visible traveling up Baja across the border and into SE California and Arizona. This dust may be a combination of domestic (Californian) and foreign (Saharan and Mexican) dust traveling north. There is also a chance this dust is mixed with smoke from the agricultural burns occurring near the border. 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.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