Smoke from wildfires in Canada and the West Coast spreads across North America [View all]

Source: NBC News

July 26, 2024, 6:50 PM EDT


Intense wildfires in western Canada have sent huge plumes of smoke sweeping across North America in recent days — pollution that has been captured in images by NASA satellites, aircraft and ground-based observatories.

An animation NASA released Friday showed smoke blanketing British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories in Canada, and drifting over Montana, Colorado, Kansas, Wisconsin and other parts of the Midwest.


NASA Earth Observatory

The maps use NASA data to show the concentration and movement of black carbon, a type of aerosol pollution released by wildfires, over North America from July 17 to July 24.

As of Friday afternoon, 948 active fires were burning in Canada, including 387 considered out of control, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre. One fast-moving blaze caused widespread destruction to Jasper, a popular alpine resort town in Alberta, and forced 25,000 people to evacuate.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/science/environment/smoke-wildfires-canada-oregon-california-spreads-rcna163810