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Abstract
Satellite imagery provides a convenient and inexpensive means for monitoring smoke plumes and evaluating inadvertant weather modification. Visual examination of LANDSAT-1 imagery for two sites in east-central Ohio indicates that, at times, a plume may extend nearly 48 km downwind and reach a width of six km. Density slicing techniques provide clues as to the particulate loading in a plume. The areal extent of plumes can be mapped and could be studied for adequate siting of ground stations in order to monitor the chemical quality of precipitation and evaluate the effects on the ecosystem. Several satellite images show unusual cloud structures that occur in the vicinity of industrial sites. It is suspected that particulates and gases from the many stacks are related to the origin of the unusual cloud formations. A dense water vapor cloud originating at a large cooling tower is clearly visible on one image. About 20 km downwind, the snow belts spread out forming a snow field about 20 km long and 20 km wide. It is suspected that the water vapor released at the cooling tower is responsible for the large downwind snowfall.
Parent Publication
Citation
Pettyjohn, Wayne A.; McKeon, John B. 1976. Satellite detection of smoke plumes and inadvertant weather modification. In: Dochinger, L. S.; Seliga, T. A., eds. Proceedings of the first international symposium on acid precipitation and the forest ecosystem; Gen. Tech. Rep. NE-23. Upper Darby, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Forest Experiment Station. 337-347
