DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 2330Z April 17, 2026
SMOKE: Eastern CONUS… Fires were detected across much of eastern CONUS this evening. However, due to significant cloud cover across the region, only a few individual smoke plumes ranging in various densities were seen via satellite imagery across the Southeastern United States. A notable fire located in Nassau County, Florida was observed generating a moderate-to-heavy density smoke plume traveling east towards the Atlantic Ocean. Another fire located in Liberty County, Florida produced a localized heavy-density smoke plume before transitioning to light-to-moderate density smoke as it extended westward into Calhoun County and northeastward into southwestern Georgia. Cuba… Two large wildfires continued to burn in the province of Pinar del Rio this evening and was observed producing a light-to-moderate density smoke plume. The moderate-density smoke traveled northwest into the Gulf and south into the Caribbean before dispersing into light-density smoke which continued further south into the Caribbean and west into the Yucatan channel, eventually merging with the layer of smoke observed in the southern Gulf of America. SMOKE/AEROSOL: Mexico/Gulf of America/Pacific Ocean… Smoke from fire activity, remnant smoke from previous days, and aerosol emissions from gas flaring and other industrial activities contributed to a layer of light-density smoke that extended across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec and into the west-central Gulf of America. The smoke was also observed moving southwestward into the Pacific Ocean off the southern coasts of Mexico and Central America. GL 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