DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0300Z January 21, 2017
SMOKE: Florida... A number of fires along with accompanying thin density smoke plumes were visible in satellite imagery during the day over the Florida peninsula with the majority of the smoke moving in an easterly direction. Southern Gulf of Mexico... Swaths of thin density smoke were seen emanating from seasonal fires burning in southeastern Mexico and from some of the oil rigs in the Bay of Campeche and spreading to the north over the far southern Gulf of Mexico. UNKNOWN AEROSOL: Western Gulf of Mexico... An area of thin density aerosol of unknown composition was present over a portion of the western Gulf of Mexico. DUST: Western Texas... Strong westerly winds kicked up a patch of mainly thin density blowing dust from point sources in western Texas located between Midland and Lubbock during the afternoon. The dust moved to the east-northeast across north central Texas nearly reaching the border of southern Oklahoma just prior to sunset. JS 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