On March 8th, 2020, around 11 AM, NOAA detected three fires around northern Virginia that were sending smoke clouds into D.C. and Maryland. The source of these fires were controlled burns conducted by the U.S. Forestry Service. NOAA was able to detect these three fires and the paths of their smoke plumes using the GOES-16 satellite. With this technology, NOAA can better serve the public by alerting them to these low quality air events and can track what areas are affected by them.

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