The latest Canadian wildfire smoke maps show unhealthy air quality now and the forecast for the near future

Smoke resulting from forest fires raging in Canada It has affected parts of the United States and satellite images from NASA show that the smoke has moved across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe. Here is the expected smoke forecast.

For several days, parts of the Midwest and Northeast have seen unhealthy levels of smoke, with Detroit, Chicago and New York City also experiencing smoke. It experiences some of the worst air quality In the world, according to the IQAir website, which monitors the air quality index around the world. On Saturday, air quality in the United States was better, with Washington, D.C., the highest-ranking US city on the index, coming in fourth in IQAir’s global rankings, and some Midwestern cities falling off the list.

The city with the worst air quality in the world is Jakarta, Indonesia, IQAir reported, followed by Lahore, Pakistan. The city of Toronto, Canada, came in third place on the list, indicating that the impact of smoke from fires has become less influential in North America this weekend.

The smoke travels through the jet stream, a pattern of winds that flow from west to east. In an email to CBS News Wednesday, meteorologist Gene Carfano, co-host of “America’s Morning Headparents” on The Weather Channel, and hurricane and storm specialist Greg Postel of The Weather Channel, said the extreme and early onset of Fire season It is associated with very above average temperatures in Canada.

An interactive map of particle pollution levels from The Associated Press, based on NOAA, EPA and other data, showed a large area of ​​red, indicating an “unhealthy” air quality index, over northwestern New York and Toronto. There were also some red spots in the Midwest, while there were some purple or “unhealthy” areas further north in Canada. Much of the country, including the East Coast and Midwest, is flagged yellow for “moderate” air quality.

On Friday, the smoke appeared to be moving east on the map.

“The air quality is bad It can be dangerous“, the National Weather Service warns — especially for more sensitive groups including children, older adults, pregnant women and people with pre-existing respiratory and cardiovascular problems. Health officials in several cities have encouraged people to limit time outdoors.

Earlier this week, New York City’s air was deemed “unhealthy,” according to AirNow and Gov. Kathy Hochul. Issued health warnings about air quality For western and central New York and eastern Lake Ontario. As of Saturday morning, conditions in New York City remained “unhealthy for sensitive groups,” while air quality in the rest of the state ranged from “moderate” to “unhealthy,” according to AirNow.

Air quality in Pittsburgh was rated as “very unhealthy” earlier in the week. Conditions improved to “moderate” as of Saturday morning, according to AirNow.

The amount of smoke the United States receives depends on “wind direction and speeds, smoke density changes from the source area, and stability in the atmosphere,” Carfagno and Postel said.

NASA said on Monday that smoke emanating from Canada had spread across the Atlantic Ocean To southwestern Europe. Images from NASA’s Terra satellite show smoke over Portugal and Spain, but NASA said the smoke had spread even further.

smoke from Forest fires He’s traveled this way before. In 2017, NASA said smoke from wildfires on the West Coast traveled 3,000 miles to the East Coast.

In 2020, smoke from massive wildfires in Australia flew around the world, passing through South America and back to Australia where it originated, according to NASA.