DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0000Z March 2, 2026
SMOKE: Kentucky… Localized plumes of moderate-to-heavy density smoke were observed this evening in southern Kentucky. Smoke originated in McCreary County and extended south into Tennessee. Central and Southeastern United States… Widespread smoke plumes across the central and southeastern United States were present this evening despite intermittent cloud cover throughout the region. Light-density smoke plumes were observed across the Gulf Coast from Texas to Georgia, with a high-concentration of individual plumes across southern Alabama and the Florida Panhandle. Particularly strong plumes of moderate-to-heavy density smoke were observed in central Louisiana, originating from the Grant and Natchitoches Parishes and traveling due north. Remnant smoke from today’s fires merged into a broad area of light-density smoke that extended from eastern Arkansas and Missouri toward the northeast into North Carolina and Virginia, eventually continuing into the Atlantic Ocean. Florida/Gulf of America… Agricultural fires east of Lake Okeechobee produced smoke that merged into a single light-density plume, which traveled east over the lake and dissipated before reaching the Atlantic coast. A particularly strong fire in the southern coastal region of Collier County produced medium-to-heavy density smoke that traveled due west into the Gulf of America. Cuba… Extensive agricultural fires in western Cuba produced primarily light-density smoke plumes this evening that drifted west into the Caribbean Sea. Similarly, light-density smoke in east-central and southwestern Cuba spread across the Caribbean Sea, extending south to the Jamaican coast and east to the Haitian coast. 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 medium-to-light density smoke that extended across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec and the western Gulf of America before continuing into the northeastern coast of Mexico and southern Texas. The medium-density smoke plume was also observed across the southwestern coast of Mexico, and light-density smoke continued to extend further west into the Pacific Ocean. Gaskill 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