Texas Smoke May 1-5, 2008
Images
- Backward Air Trajectory 1st
- Backward Air Trajectory 2nd
- Backward Air Trajectory 3rd
- Backward Air Trajectory 4th
- Backward Air Trajectory 5th
- Satellite Animation Gulf of Mexico 1st
- Satellite Animation Gulf of Mexico 2nd
- Satellite Animation Gulf of Mexico 3rd
- Satellite Animation Gulf of Mexico 4th
- Satellite Animation Gulf of Mexico 5th
- Satellite Image Mexico 30th 12:05 pm CDT - Indicated Fires Red
- Satellite Image Mexico 1st 2:15 pm CDT - Indicated Fires Red
- Satellite Image Mexico 2nd 11:50 am CDT - Indicated Fires Red
- Satellite Image Mexico 3rd 2:00 pm CDT - Indicated Fires Red
- Satellite Image Mexico 4th 11:40 am CDT - Indicated Fires Red
- Satellite Image Mexico High Resolution 1st 2:15 pm CDT - Indicated Fires Red
Description
Smoke from agricultural burning in Mexico and Central America moved into South Texas Texas on Thursday May 1st and continued in South Texas through Monday May 5th. On May 2nd, the smoke also spread northward into Central and Southeast Texas.
The highest daily average PM2.5 measurement during this event was 28.4 micrograms per cubic meter (µg/m³) at the Brownsville Continuous Ambient Monitoring Station (CAMS) 80 on the 3rd. This measurement rated as Moderate, on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Air Quality Index (AQI)
scale. PM2.5 measurements were in the "Moderate" range across most of the affected areas on all five days. The highest one-hour average PM2.5 measured was 41.6 µg/m³ at Laredo CAMS 313 for the hour beginning 11:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time (CDT) on May 1st.
Backward air trajectories indicate that the air came from Mexico and Central America. Satellite imagery also shows evidence of smoke in the western Gulf of Mexico on the 1st through the 5th. Fire channel satellite imagery shows numerous large fires in southeastern Mexico and Central America on the 1st through the 5th as well.
