Volcanic Ash, Aerosols, and Trace Gases Over Alaska: A Perspective from a High-Latitude Proving Ground

From north to south, east to west, Alaska has many natural hazards: volcanoes, wildland fires, moving sea ice, and flooding rivers. Low-earth orbiting (LEO) satellites have transformed hazard management in Alaska. The Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) has played a lead role in hazard forecasting in Alaska by deploying highly capable, remote-sensing instrument suites aboard LEO satellites. Via direct-broadcast (DB), LEO weather satellites transmit data to reception antennas in Alaska as they fly over. Data products are then generated and distributed from computer clusters at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) and the National Weather Service Alaska Region. Antenna reception, product generation, and analysis of new products are part of a high-latitude proving ground hosted by The Geographic Information Network of Alaska (GINA) at UAF. Over the past decade, NOAA and NASA have contributed to these proving ground efforts, making an enormous difference to countless Alaskans.

This presentation will focus on detecting volcanic ash and sulfur dioxide over Alaska using LEO satellite data received via DB. These low-latency products are used by the NWS Anchorage Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC) and the USGS Alaska Volcano Observatory. We will describe volcanic ash, smoke, and sulfur dioxide DB products derived from the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) and the Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite (OMPS). Examples of the volcanic filaments over the Gulf of Alaska from the April 2023 eruption of Sheveluch Volcano are striking for the enormous size of the SO2 plume but the limited detection of volcanic ash. Additionally, aerosol optical depth data derived from JPSS data is rich with information on smoke plumes generated by wildland fires. Analysis of 2023 aerosol optical depth products is ongoing as part of the high-latitude proving ground activities with preliminary products adapted for use in the National Weather Service Alaska Region AWIPS system. All products generated by the DB system are available to the public.