Portland and other West Coast cities remain at the top of the hazardous air quality charts, and now the bad air has spread east.
NASA says: NOAA/NASA’s Suomi NPP satellite captured two recent images of the United States and both images show that the winds have changed yet again, blowing the smoke from western fires back to the East and crossing the continental U.S.
Along with the smoke, small particles suspended in the air (aerosols) are also moved along the jet stream and bring hazardous air quality across the country. The image above shows the entire United States and the shroud of smoke that hangs over the majority of it.
The image below shows the aerosols that accompany that smoke. Aerosols are a mixture of small particles and chemicals produced by the incomplete burning of carbon-containing materials such as trees, grasses, peat, brush, etc. All smoke contains carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and particulate matter (PM or soot). The smaller the particles, the easier they are to be inhaled and absorbed into the lungs.
