DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0210Z March 7, 2022
SMOKE: Southeastern U.S including Northwestern Florida... A large fire complex located in the Florida panhandle to the northeast of Panama City near the Tenmile Swamp and Green Bay Swamp was seen producing moderate density to thick density smoke observed spreading generally to the north and northwest this evening. Light, moderate, and thick density smoke from this fire complex reached as far north as southeastern/east central Alabama and southwestern/western central Georgia this evening. Southeastern U.S./Mid-Atlantic Region/Northeastern U.S... Widespread cloud cover was observed from the western Gulf Coast region to the southern and central Appalachians, the Middle Atlantic region, and much of the Northeast, which limited information on smoke coverage in satellite imagery. Light to moderate density smoke due to the recent significant and widespread seasonal fire activity occurring in the southeastern U.S. was observed over most of the region south of a weather system this evening. Light density smoke from fire activity in the Southeast was also seen extending from the eastern Florida panhandle northward over southern and eastern Georgia, much of South Carolina, and over eastern/central North Carolina before the northern edge of the smoke became obscured by cloud cover from a weather system north of the region this evening. SMOKE/AEROSOL: Southeastern Texas and Southern Louisiana/Bay of Campeche/Gulf of Mexico/Central, Southern, and Eastern Mexico/Northwestern Central America/Pacific Ocean South of Mexico and Central America... The combination of light to moderate density smoke from seasonal fires in Mexico and Central America along with other atmospheric pollutants including aerosols from oil and gas flaring and other industries in the region was visible this evening across portions of central, southern, and eastern Mexico, the western half of the Gulf of Mexico, most of the Bay of Campeche, northwestern Central America, and extending well off the southern coast of Mexico and northwestern Central America over the Pacific Ocean. The smoke/aerosol combination also spreads northward to least as far north as portions of southeastern Texas and southern Louisiana though cloud cover thickened farther to the north and northeast over the U.S., which prevented additional information on the extent of the smoke/aerosols in satellite imagery. Moderate density areas of smoke/aerosols were seen this evening over portions of eastern and southeastern Mexico, the far western Gulf of Mexico off the eastern Mexican coast, the southwestern part of the Bay of Campeche, and along and off the southern coast of Mexico and Guatemala over the Pacific Ocean this evening. BLOWING DUST: Southern New Mexico, Northwestern/Western Texas, Northern/Northwestern Mexico... A large region of moderate to thick density blowing dust behind a weather system located in the Central Plains was observed this evening moving eastward and southeastward over Southern New Mexico extending east and southeast from there over Northwestern and Western Texas over El Paso and to the northern part of the Mexican state of Chihuahua in north central Mexico. Blowing dust was also observed over parts of Northwestern Mexico east of the Gulf of California. Remnant blowing dust, which might be present in areas farther to the east over the south central U.S. could not be seen due to cloud cover this evening. Sambucci 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 map: https://www.ospo.noaa.gov/data/land/fire/currenthms.jpg Smoke data: https://satepsanone.nesdis.noaa.gov/pub/FIRE/web/HMS/Smoke_Polygons Fire data: https://satepsanone.nesdis.noaa.gov/pub/FIRE/web/HMS/Fire_Points ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS REGARDING THIS PRODUCT SHOULD BE SENT TO: SSDFireTeam@noaa.gov