DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0330Z April 21, 2018

SMOKE:
Central/South Central/Southeastern US...
A significant amount of seasonal fire activity was detected over the
Central, South Central, and Southeastern US during the day with numerous
mainly thin density smoke plumes visible especially over the South Central
and Southeastern US from eastern Texas to the Carolinas. Cloudiness
over the Central US did limit smoke detection in satellite imagery to
some extent.

Northern Mexico/Western Texas...
Rather large fires over northern Mexico were emitting moderately dense
to thick smoke which spread quickly to the east and northeast with the
leading edge of the thinner density smoke reaching into far western Texas.

DUST:
Northern Mexico/South Central and Eastern New Mexico/Western Texas...
Mainly thin to perhaps locally moderately dense blowing dust originated
from source regions over northern Mexico (northern Chihuahua), southern
and southeastern New Mexico (including White Sands), and western Texas
(including the area near Midland-Odessa). The dust merged to form a swath
which covered portions of norther Mexico, southwestern and western Texas,
south central and eastern New Mexico with the dust generally spreading
to the northeast and more to the north over northwestern Texas.

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

Unless otherwise indicated:

Areas of smoke are analyzed using GOES-EAST and GOES-WEST Visible satellite imagery.

Only a general description of areas of smoke or significant smoke plumes will be analyzed.

A quantitative assessment of the density/amount of particulate or the vertical distribution is not included.

Widespread cloudiness may prevent the detection of smoke even from significant fires.