U.S. Air Quality

Code Orange Ozone Levels in Texas; Smoke from Canadian Fires in U.S.; Moderate AOD in Several States

PM2.5 levels (top left, courtesy AIRNow) were Code Yellow (Moderate) for much of the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, Mississippi Valley, and southern portions of the Plain States and Great Lakes regions. Code Orange (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups) PM2.5 levels were reported throughout the day in the northern and southern areas of Ohio. Ozone levels (top right, courtesy AIRNow) were Code Yellow throughout much of the country, with some areas reporting Code Orange levels. States that reported Code Orange Ozone levels are Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and California. For tomorrow, Action Days are declared for much of the eastern half of Texas. Houston-Galveston-Brazoria, TX is forcasted to experience Code Red (Unhealthy) ozone levels.

NOAA's Hazard Mapping System (HMS, bottom right) reports smoke from the Quebec wildfires that have been reported on here at the Smog Blog have extended into Pennsylvania, Virginia and North Carolina today. MODIS TERRA true color image captured an images of the fires and smoke in Quebec that can be viewed here. The smoke plume from the fires in southern Ontario has expanded today and now extends into the U.S over Michigan, New York, Pennsylvanian, Ohio, and Indiana. Another large smoke plume was reported over Missouri, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, Indiana, and Illinois. The agricultural fires in Minnesota, North and South Carolina continued today. Several fires were also reported in Louisiana and Georgia today

The MODIS Terra AOD map (IDEA, bottom left) shows moderate AOD values observed over several states today. These states include Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, South Carolina, North and South Carolina, Nebraska, and Wyoming. High AOD values were reported in Virginia, Ohio, New York and in Quebec near the area of the wild fires.