Friday, March 17, 2023

DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 1615Z March 17, 2023

SMOKE/AEROSOLS:
Atlantic Ocean/Southeast US Coast including all of Florida/Gulf of
Mexico/Southern Mexico/Northern Central America/Pacific Ocean (off
Mexico/Central America coast)..
A large area of mainly thin density smoke/haze from wild/agricultural
fires and industrial activity in Mexico and Central America was seen
stretching from the Pacific Ocean (off the Mexico/Central America
coast) across southern and eastern Mexico and northern Central America
eastward across most of the Gulf of Mexico, across Florida and into the
Atlantic Ocean. Pockets of moderately dense smoke is seen along coastal
regions of eastern Mexico and into the western Gulf of Mexico. Another
moderately dense patch can be seen over the southern Gulf of Mexico
region. The regions of moderately dense smoke have combined with areas of
industrial aerosols. The smoke in the Atlantic Ocean and across Florida
is combination of smoke from the fires burning in the Mexico/Central
America region and agricultural fires that burned across the Mississippi
Valley and Southeast US over the last few days. Today, the southern
US and southeast US up to the Mid-Atlantic are cloud covered so smoke
across this region is difficult to detect.


JK


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.