DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0300Z August 19, 2016
SMOKE: California/Oregon to the Western Great Lakes: Smoke from the numerous wildfires in the West, particularly in California, Oregon, Idaho and Wyoming, have been producing smoke for many days with the remnant smoke now reaching as far east as the the western Great Lakes. While extensive cloud cover over Wyoming, Montana and the Dakotas precludes smoke detection in this area the smoke generally extends from much of California across Nevada and southeast Oregon, through northern Utah and southern Idaho into far southeast Montana and northern Wyoming across South Dakota into Minnesota and Wisconsin and adjoining Lakes Superior and Michigan. A separate finger of light density smoke was detected over western Kansas. Large areas of moderate to very dense smoke were seen closer to the wildfires and covered most of southern Idaho and eastern Oregon and extended into northern Nevada and northeast California. Additional moderate to very dense smoke was over central California from the southern Sierras associated with the Cedar fire, across the central valley to the central coast where the Sobranes and Chimney fires are burning and extending into the Pacific. Washington: A fire on the east slopes of the Cascades in Chelan county was spreading moderate to dense smoke to the southeast into central Washington. Northwest California: A patch of light smoke was seen this evening over northwest Alberta and adjoining Northwest Territories from a few fires burning in the region. Ruminski 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