DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 1700Z March 9, 2023

SMOKE/AEROSOL:
South Central and Southeastern United States, Atlantic Ocean off the
Southeast United States Coast, Gulf of Mexico, Western Caribbean Islands,
Western Caribbean Sea, Eastern and Southern Mexico, Northwestern Central
America and the Pacific Ocean off the Southern Coast of Mexico and
Central America…
The enormous area of a mixture of smoke, from significant seasonal fire
activity, and aerosol from gas flaring activity was seen covering an
area from the Atlantic Ocean off the Southeast United States Coast to the
Pacific Ocean south of Mexico. Within the area, the smoke covered southern
and eastern Mexico, the south central and southeastern United States, Gulf
of Mexico, the western Caribbean Islands, and the western Caribbean Sea.
The seasonal fire activity across the southern United States is likely the
largest contributor to the portions across the northern Gulf of Mexico,
United States, and into the Atlantic, while activity across the western
Caribbean Islands contributed to portions across the western Caribbean
and into the eastern Gulf of Mexico and Central America. Towards the
western region of the Gulf of Mexico, the contributions were mixed, from
sources in the United States, Mexico and activity in the NW Caribbean.

Hanna


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

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.