DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 1600Z March 17, 2024
SMOKE: Cuba/Caribbean Sea... A plume of light density remnant smoke from seasonal burning in Cuba was observed just south of the island over the Caribbean Sea. AEROSOL/SMOKE: Gulf of Mexico/Central-Southern Mexico/Gulf of Honduras/Pacific Ocean south of Mexico/Central America... A large area of predominantly light density smoke originating from widespread fire activity in Central America and northern South America, mixed in with aerosol from a composite of volcanic emissions in Mexico, and industrial sources was noted over most of the Gulf of Mexico, crossing through central-southern Mexico, and extending over most of Central America and over the Pacific ocean off the coast of southern Mexico and Central America. WS 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