DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 1500Z August 1, 2017
SMOKE: Southern Canada into James Bay... The persistent fire activity across southern British Columbia is maintaining a varying density smoke plume that extends into James Bay. Thick smoke is being emitted directly from these wildfires, with the plume thinning as it is advected eastward across southern Canada and the northern Plains. Northwest Territories... Fire activity throughout the northern Northwest Territories has allowed for a light to moderate smoke plume to form over the region. A second smoke plume over northeastern Alberta and northwestern Saskatchewan has its origins in fires throughout the southern Northwest Territories. These smoke plumes will likely be drifting to the east and south east throughout the rest of the afternoon and evening. Northern United States... Fires throughout northern California, Idaho, and western Montana are contributing to smoke seen from off the northern California coast out across southern Montana and south into Wyoming and Colorado. These fires are emitting moderate smoke, but the majority of the entire plume is of light density. DUST: Puerto Rico/Central Caribbean... A Saharan Dust layer is visible over Puerto Rico which extends southward to the Venezuelan Caribbean island and north and northwest out over the open Atlantic Ocean. Guadeloupe/Dominica/Martinique... A secondary layer of Saharan Dust is seen extending eastward from the islands of Guadeloupe, Dominica, and Martinique. -Hosley 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