DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 1645Z February 26, 2026
SMOKE: Florida... Agricultural fires near and south of Lake Okeechobee were observed producing light-density smoke moving northeast into the Atlantic Ocean. Cuba... Fires persisted across Cuba, producing light-density smoke plumes drifting northwest into the Gulf. AEROSOL/SMOKE: Mexico/Gulf of America/Pacific Ocean... Smoke from widespread fire activity and remnant smoke from previous days, as well as aerosol emissions from gas flaring and other industrial activities in central and southern Mexico, concentrated into a layer of light-density smoke that extended across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec and dispersed into the western Gulf. Smoke extended along the western and southern coasts of Mexico and Central America, continuing west into the Pacific Ocean. YL 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:http://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