U.S. Air Quality

Good AQI over the US; Saharan dust reaching the east coast

Air quality today over the country is good although moderate concentrations were detected mainly in the Eastern states. PM2.5 levels were moderate trhoughout the entire day in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast region (top left). Ozone levels were good with some moderate readings in the same regions and central plains for short period of time. Fires continue taking place over the nation and several states including canada have been covered by smoke (top right). A large area of light smoke and other aerosols extends from the East coast, through the Mid-Atlantic into Texas, and then covers the central US and into southern Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Ontario. The smoke is then caught up around a low pressure system over far eastern Canada and is pulled through the northern Great Lakes region and off the Northeast (middle left). MODIS GASP animation shows the aerosol optical depth (AOD) retrievals where high AOD values were detected in different states such as, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming (middle right).
In particular, the high AOD in Florida is due to the dust load from Sahara storms (bottom left). This Saharan dust can still be seen over Florida and the eastern Gulf of Mexico as well as off the Georgia and South Carolina border (bottom right). The dust is being pulled northeast further out into the Atlantic.