DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 2330Z July 19, 2026
SMOKE: Canada... Wildfires in the central Northwest Territories, south-central Ontario, and central Saskatchewan and Manitoba continued to burn this evening, producing vigorous medium-to-heavy density smoke plumes that embedded in the jet stream and drifted eastward into the Atlantic Ocean. A light-to-moderate density smoke plume covered most of Canada, extending westward into the Pacific Ocean, eastward from the Northwest Territories into Nunavut, and drifting southeastward into northern CONUS before continuing eastward into the Atlantic Ocean. CONUS/Atlantic Ocean... A layer of light-to-moderate density smoke from wildfires in Canada stretched across the upper Midwest and the Great Lakes region and continued across the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern CONUS, eventually mixing with a remnant layer of moderate-to-heavy smoke in the Atlantic Ocean. Colorado… The Aspen Acres Fire was observed producing a localized moderate-to-heavy density smoke plume. The fire also produced an extensive layer of light-density smoke drifting westward within the state. Texas/Arkansas… Fires in eastern Texas and Arkansas were observed producing individual light-to-moderate density smoke plumes extending eastward. South Carolina… A fire in South Carolina produced a localized moderate-to-heavy density smoke plume and an extensive layer of light-density smoke drifting eastward into the Atlantic Ocean. Pacific Northwest... Numerous wildfires located in central Oregon, eastern Washington, and southern British Columbia were observed producing localized heavy density smoke plumes and an extensive layer of light-to-moderate density smoke this evening, which drifted northeastward and merged with the broader layer of smoke from northern Canada. Mexico/Central America/Gulf of America... A regional layer of light-density smoke from fire activity and remnant smoke from previous days was observed in southern Mexico, spanning over the western Gulf of America, the Yucatan Peninsula, and portions of Central America. The smoke also extended southward across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec into the Pacific Ocean. BLOWING DUST: Caribbean… Light dust from the Sahara Desert was observed blowing westward across the Lower Antilles into the Caribbean Sea. 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 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