DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 1500Z June 28, 2026
SMOKE: Northwest Territories/Alberta/Nunavut… Several fires in the Northwest Territories and northern Alberta continued to burn this morning, producing moderate-to-heavy density smoke plumes, as well as a regional layer of light-to-heavy density smoke that spread through the Northwest Territories into Nunavut. The smoke also extended southward into northeastern British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, merging with the smoke generated by the individual fires in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Manitoba/Saskatchewan… Scattered wildfires in Manitoba and Saskatchewan were observed generated localized heavy-to-moderate density smoke plumes. Smoke from these fires accumulated into a layer of moderate-density smoke that spread across northern Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Quebec… Multiple wildfires across central Quebec and Labrador were observed producing mostly moderate-to-heavy smoke plumes that generally drifted to the southeast. A layer of light-to-moderate density smoke was also observed dispersing over Quebec and the Hudson Bay into eastern Ontario. Light smoke continued eastward into the Atlantic Ocean and southwestward across Ontario, merging with the smoke from Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and western Ontario before reaching the Midwestern United States. Canada… Smoke from today’s fire activity, as well as remnant smoke from previous days, has resulted in a large layer of light-density smoke that spanned from the Northwest Territories, across Nunavut and the Hudson Bay, continuing east into Quebec and Labrador. The southern extent of the smoke ranged from Northern Alberta to southern Ontario and Quebec. Southwestern US/Great Plains/Upper Mississippi Valley… Multiple large wildfires continued to burn across Arizona, Utah, and Colorado this morning, producing light-to-heavy smoke that traveled towards the northeast. A large area of light-density smoke from these fires continued across the Central and Northern Plains, eventually shifting direction towards the southeast over the Upper and Middle Mississippi Valley. Other wildfires in the region were also observed generating individual light-density smoke plumes extending northeast. Mexico/Pacific Ocean/Gulf of America/Southeastern US/Atlantic Ocean/ A large layer of light-density smoke, consisting of smoke from today’s fire activity and remnant smoke, was observed across the southwestern coast of Mexico, extending into the Pacific Ocean. Smoke was also observed in the Bay of Campeche, the Yucatan Peninsula, and parts of Central America. It continued across the Gulf of America and into the southeastern US, ultimately reaching offshore of the Carolinas and into the Atlantic Ocean. BLOWING DUST… Caribbean… Light dust from the Sahara Desert was observed spanning much of the Caribbean Sea this morning. 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