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2020 Online fire and smoke maps

Plai

Paul Lai
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It's almost 10a PDT and it feels like dusk. Don't think we'll see the sun today. This is really strange, given the air quality index (AQI) is below 50, and the temperature a very temperate 62F.

Anyone have an idea if this is smoke cover or cloud (water vapor) that's covering/blanketing the SF Bay area?

Found my answer...
Smoke coming from out of the (immediate) area fires.


OAKLAND (CBS SF) — A historic outbreak of wildfires across Northern California left a massive layer of smoke draped over the San Francisco Bay Area, turning skies early Wednesday into an eerie dark orange haze and covering cars, yards and homes with layers of ash.

More than 2 million acres have burned so far in a series of wildfires with the Bear and Creek fires currently raging to the east of the San Francisco Bay Area. Smoke from the blazes had covered Wednesday morning with a layer of darkness.
 

doc

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@TexasStout: is that first pic Evergreen, CO, Hwy 74 headed down to the lake?
If so, thats about 2 miles from where I live.
Air was trash on Monday from Cameron Peak fire before the storm rolled in.
 

Wendy

Resurrecting the Oxford comma
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The pictures from northern California and Oregon today are stunning. The sky looks like Mars.

Here’s a shot of downtown San Francisco that I pulled of the newsfeed from today, taken around 10 AM:
E6A3DAD7-E80C-4846-84BD-CAABC84F573D.jpeg


This is so upsetting for so many reasons.And although the smoke maps show the extent of it, only pictures like this depict the reality on the ground for those of us not in the West.

Please be safe, those of you in the West!
 
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Wendy

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There was a meme out and about not long ago that a sign of civilized society was putting your shopping cart into the shopping cart corral once you've unloaded it. I believe it.
I believe it too.

I think that, as @raytseng said, people are feeling out of control or hopeless. And now, wildfires are making it worse. How frightening.

It still doesn’t square with me the littering and general carelessness. Now is the time to go the extra mile, not take an easy way out.
 

Bad Bob

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Check the interactive map on this site. That is where all the smoke is coming from.
 

Tony

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We had mostly clear skies at my house in San Jose last weekend, but very warm temps. The official highs Sat/Sun/Mon were 100/105/106 and where my house is, temps are usually 6-10 degrees warmer. We planned to go to Tahoe Mon to Sat, but since family cabin was empty we left as early as we could on Sun to avoid what was predicted to be the hottest day with a chance of power outages. We had a high layer of smoke as soon as we got into Livermore area and it was thick enough at Kirkwood that my wife quickly bailed on hike friend and I took from his place to above the top of chair 9. Since then we've alternated between OK air and skies and a lot of smoke. Monday was OK, Tues started smoky, then cleared a lot in PM as it was cool with strong N wind. That is Mt Pluto, where Northstar is located on the other side visible across Lake.
0012LakeTuesdayCRR.JPG

Air on Wednesday was good enough for my wife and I to go for a bike ride to trailhead to Nevada Beach to see if it was closed. Thurs was bad with AQI of about 175 all day. I spent morning prepping, priming and caulking single garage door that has been damaged by City snowblower throwing broken chains from City snowplow into it more than once. I went for ride in PM with our White German Shepherd. I walked the steeper uphills as I did not want to breathe too hard. I pushed and rode into Van Sickle Bi-State Park and on the way out found it was closed, even to hikers due to fire danger. I saw a SLT PD car, but I think he was mostly watching the 3-way stop and left before I got to gate. I did have my first hard crash in a long time as my off-leash dog was running on my left on a downhill and a chipmunk appeared on the right. Luckily it was sandy where I landed so I only got some minor scrapes. Following pictures are taken from rocks near first little rise Heavenly gondola goes up before it flattens out before going to above 9K. While Lake was not really visible, even though it's less than a mile away, I could see big boat on it. That is Harrah's to the right of trees at center. Can you see the boat?
0020SmokyLakeTahoeCRRR.JPG

What about now when it has moved a little ahead and I've zoomed in?
0021BoatOnLakeZoomCR.JPG

I've circled it here
0021BoatOnLakeZoomCircledCRJPG.JPG
 

Tony

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We've been at Tahoe since Sunday and Friday was the first day I went to the beach. It required ignoring the Forest Service closure and walking over a mile each way. I was not the only one doing it as I saw about twenty people between Nevada Beach and on the trail to get there. In first picture, I think that is the point on the S side of Emerald Bay barely visible behind boats at left, but you could not see 12 miles directly across Lake. Second picture is the meadow the trail pass with East Peak (near top of Olympic chair at Heavenly). The gondola goes up to right of center. Pictures taken between 5:30 and 6 PM.
0049NevadaBeachCR.JPG
0062Meadow2EastPeakCR.JPG
 

Wendy

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Here’s another, from my nephew’s girlfriend, who is a research geologist on a work cruise off the coast near Santa Cruz....I feel a little weird posting these since I don’t live there and can’t comment on personal experience, but still, it’s an amazing photo:
BD0A9B2E-073B-4A03-A293-3C44E88B4D3C.jpeg
 

tball

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I feel for those on the west coast. Those are some crazy bad air quality numbers. Seems like the smoke is just stuck in the west.

Map - PurpleAir 2020-09-14 08-50-56.png

 

AmyPJ

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I feel for those on the west coast. Those are some crazy bad air quality numbers. Seems like the smoke is just stuck in the west.

View attachment 110136
I can’t even wrap my head around that.
 

chopchop

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Yeah, it's bad. I'm visiting NE WA and seems I picked a bad time. Can't hike in this soup :(


IMG_20200913_144154.jpg


Screenshot_20200913-185933.jpg
 

David Chaus

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It has been eerie, and strange. Looking at the sun in mid-day and thinking it looked like a full moon....strange. Staying indoors more, and having it be really quiet as people haven’t been operating lawn movers and other power equipment.

The smoke/smog has been lingering around all days for several days. The smoke plumes from CA and OR apparently blew out to sea, then blew back in to WA state, adding the wildfires we are struggling with as well. Since then the air has been unusually stagnant, without the usual breezes. And I know it’s nearly as bad where I live compared to other places in the state and in OR.

Things are supposed to slowly change in the next few days. All we can do is wait.
 

4ster

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I can’t even wrap my head around that.
how has the air quality been in northern Utah?

Tahoe hasn’t been as bad as some of the other areas around here but yesterday afternoon I did not want to even be outside.
AQI around 170 last night which is as bad as it’s been, about 150 this morning. Looks better than it is, at least I can see the mountains
A3AC5959-5ECD-47EB-9DD0-5778AE8214A2.jpeg


I will post another photo later when the wind inevitably brings more smoke in. Even now there is ash floating around. I can't even walk out further than this as it is National Forest land & still closed.
 

Bad Bob

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All the golf courses were shut down yesterday for air quality here in Spokane. County is claiming the worst air quality since 98 and it was bad that year.
 

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