DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 1650Z April 30 2024
AEROSOL/SMOKE: Central-Southern Mexico/Gulf of Mexico/Yucatan Peninsula/Caribbean Sea/Central America/Pacific Ocean... A large area of predominantly light to moderate density smoke attributed to widespread seasonal fire activity throughout central-southern Mexico, Central America and the Yucatan Peninsula was observed this morning from central-southern Mexico, north through the Gulf of Mexico, extending into central Texas and southern Oklahoma. This area also extended into the western portion of the Caribbean Sea, Central America and into the Pacific Ocean off the southwest coastlines of Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador. Areas of slightly more dense smoke and aerosols were observed northern Central America and the Yucatan Peninsula. Aerosols from a composite of volcanic emissions as well as industrial sources in Mexico, and gas flaring activity in the Bay of Campeche contributed to the expansive area of aerosol/smoke observed throughout these regions this morning. Willkens 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