DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0030Z July 26, 2024
SMOKE: Canada/United States/Pacific Ocean/Atlantic Ocean... A significant amount of mixed density smoke attributed to a combination of seasonal fire activity throughout the United States and numerous wildfires in northern Canada, Alaska and the Pacific Northwest region continues to be observed today. Light density smoke was seen throughout the majority of the United States, extending east-southeast from Alaska and the Bering Sea into the northern Pacific Ocean off the coasts of Washington State and Oregon. The light density smoke continued moving east across northern Canada and the United States, extending south along the West Coast, reaching Texas before extending northeast through Midwest and northeastern U.S and eventually dispersing into the northern Atlantic Ocean. Areas of moderate density smoke were seen throughout Canada, the Northern Great Plains, and majority of the Pacific Northwest. Areas with visible thick density smoke were were concentrated in the Pacific Northwest and Alberta. A patch of moderate density smoke separate from the larger area mentioned prior was observed over the northern Atlantic Ocean between Canada and Greenland. Earlier in the morning analysis, larger areas of moderate to thick density smoke was observed throughout Canada, Alaska, and parts of the northern-central U.S, however heavy cloud cover has now settled in these regions and has obscured observations, with the moderate and thick density smoke likely still present underneath the cloud cover. Pacific Northwest... An area of moderate density smoke attributed to numerous wildfires throughout the Pacific Northwest was observed today despite heavy cloud cover in the region. Multiple wildfires located throughout southeast British Columbia, Washington State and Oregon, ranging from midsize to large, have been seen producing moderate to thick plumes in previous days and continue to add to the larger area of smoke within the region. A newly ignited fire located in north-central California was seen producing a large plume of moderate to thick density smoke that extended northeast in direction, reaching as far as central Idaho. Although heavy cloud cover throughout areas of the Pacific Northwest region was present this morning, based on previous smoke analysis and observations it can be presumed that there is thick smoke present in the area but is concealed by today’s cloud cover. DUST: A significant amount of Saharan dust was observed over the Atlantic Ocean with light amounts seen over the eastern part of the Caribbean Sea. Nguyen 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