DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 1630Z January 24, 2023
SMOKE/AEROSOL: Middle and Lower Mississippi Valley/Southeastern U.S… A broad area of very thin density smoke/aerosol mixture was visible this morning spreading to the northeast across portions of the Middle and Lower Mississippi Valley region and the southeastern U.S. This smoke/aerosol mixture was likely due to some recent seasonal fire activity occurring in parts of the south central and southeastern U.S. as well as from seasonal fire activity and industrial sources in Mexico. Western Gulf of Mexico/Southern and Eastern Mexico/Northwestern Central America/Pacific Ocean South of Mexico and Northwestern Central America… A large mass of smoke and aerosol from seasonal fire activity primarily in Mexico and industrial activity also mainly in Mexico was visible covering the Bay of Campeche, much of the western Gulf of Mexico and possibly extending farther to the north and northeast but extensive cloud cover over Texas, Louisiana, and the northern and central Gulf of Mexico prevented detection in satellite imagery. The smoke/aerosol mixture also was seen over southern and eastern Mexico, northwestern Central America, and extending well to the south of southern Mexico and northwestern Central America over the Pacific Ocean. This smoke/aerosol mixture was due to seasonal fire activity and industrial sources in Mexico and Central America. Within this huge area of thin density smoke/aerosol mixture was a more concentrated area of moderately dense to even relatively thick smoke/aerosol centered over far southeastern Mexico, the western Bay of Campeche, and especially south of the southeastern coast of Mexico over the Gulf of Tehuantepec and the Pacific Ocean. Cuba/Hispaniola/Caribbean Sea/Southeastern Gulf of Mexico… A sizable area of thin density smoke/aerosol from rounds of seasonal burning and industrial activity in Cuba and Hispaniola was present across portions of western Hispaniola, Cuba, the Caribbean Sea south of Cuba, and the southeastern Gulf of Mexico to the northwest of Cuba and west of the Florida Keys. A smaller embedded patch of moderate density smoke/aerosol was seen over the Caribbean Sea to the northwest of Jamaica. 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 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