The Gann Fire will be something to watch this week, as well as our air quality. The fire is located to the east of Stockton and is already over 9,000 acres in size.
The smoke from the fire is looping around Lake Tahoe, going from south to north in California, then west to east north of I-80 into Nevada.
The smoke comes and goes in the Truckee Meadows and will be worse in the late evening and overnight as the Washoe Zephyr kicks in.
The smoke will be light to moderate, with some air quality impacts. However, it is not expected to reach Unhealthy levels for all, just sensitive groups.
The smoke will also be worse north of I-80 around Cold Springs and the North Valleys.
Our air quality is forecasted to be in the moderate range overall, but there could be pockets of worse air quality, especially at night.
Reno’s air quality did reach Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups on Wednesday, but that was primarily because of ozone.
The haze will be light to moderate in nature in the Truckee Meadows.
The location of the smoke depends on the strength and direction of the wind. Wind changes with height as well, impacting the smoke plume at different levels.
According to satellite imagery, the smoke plume from the Gann Fire is moving from south to north, which corresponds with the upper levels of the atmosphere and not at the surface, which is coming out of the west.
By dinnertime, the Washoe Zephyr will kick in, gusting in the 20’s. This will be enough wind at the surface to eventually override the southerly flow aloft and bring in more smoke to the Truckee Meadows Wednesday evening.
Winds can break apart smoke, but they can also bring more in. At night, smoke that is aloft settles at the surface in a sinking motion.
