June 26, 2008
Very unhealthy air quality in California, Hazy East, and African Dust arrives
Air quality (EPA AIRNow) conditions remain poor (code yellow-red; 16 < PM2.5 –ug/m3 < 150) in California due to many fires. PM2.5 (left) and Ozone (right) levels are particularly high in the Northern part of the state. Smoke is likely impacting neighboring states. Unfortunately, there are few ground-based monitors in Nevada, Utah, and Arizona. We do, however, have satellite AOD (center image) from MODIS, which can provide a better idea on the column smoke density. Local LIDAR data is also useful to point out the actual height of this aerosol. Yesterday's Data from researchers at The Aerospace Corporation (provided by Steven Beck) shows the smoke altitude. Also, refer to the CALIPSO LIDAR profile. I will post current LIDAR data as soon as it is made available.
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Skies are also hazy/cloudy [see MODIS AOD (above) and RGB (below) images] over most of the Eastern half of the country. Haze visible here is probably primarily due to sulfates and nitrates. Mostly code yellow air quality (EPA AIRNow) has been reported for this region.
Dust, which has been transported from Africa, is moving closer towards the United States. Southern Florida is currently being impacted; local air quality monitors are recording concentrations in the code yellow range. AOD maps from GASP (below) and MODIS (above) capture the African dust (seen over the Atlantic and moving into Florida).
All MODIS AOD and RGB images have been sourced from NOAA UMBC GASP IDEA