Haze Review for Year 2020 Archives - Page 2 of 2

Review of Regional Haze Situation for February 2020

1.1 In February 2020, Northeast Monsoon conditions prevailed over the ASEAN region. During this period, which is also traditional dry season in the northern ASEAN region, dry weather persisted over the Mekong sub-region. In the southern ASEAN region, there were scattered showers on most days. However, brief periods of dry weather were experienced in Malaysia, and northern and central Sumatra (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Average Daily Rainfall for Feb 2020. (Source: JAXA GsMaP)

1.2 In the northern ASEAN region, dry weather gave rise to scattered hotspot activities in the Mekong sub-region. Based on surveillance by the NOAA-20 satellite, the highest number of hotspots was detected in Cambodia and Myanmar. In Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam, the hotspot count in February 2020 was comparable to the same period in 2019 (Figure 2).

Figure 2: Hotspot count for the northern ASEAN region for Feb 2013 – 2020. [Note: Hotspot count from year 2019 onward is based on the NOAA-20 satellite, and for the period from year 2013-2018 is based on the Suomi-NPP satellite.]

1.3 In the southern ASEAN region, hotspot activities were generally subdued in February 2020. The number of hotspots detected was slightly lower than the same period in 2019 (Figure 3).

Figure 3: Hotspot count for the southern ASEAN region for Feb 2013 – 2020. [Note: Hotspot count from year 2019 onward is based on the NOAA-20 satellite, and for the period from year 2013-2018 is based on the Suomi-NPP satellite.]

1.4 During February 2020, there were persistent hotspot activities in parts of the Mekong sub-region. In particular, significant clusters of hotspots were detected in Cambodia. In Thailand, clusters of hotspots were occasionally detected in its northern, northeastern and central regions. Hotspots were detected frequently in central and eastern Myanmar, and northern and southern Lao PDR during the month. In the southern ASEAN region, occasional isolated hotspots were detected mostly in Sumatra, Malaysia and Kalimantan.

Figure 4: Distribution of hotspots detected based on NOAA-20 satellite surveillance for Feb 2020.

1.5 Based on NOAA-20 satellite surveillance, hotspots with moderate to high fire intensity were detected mainly in Cambodia, southern Lao PDR and parts of Thailand and Myanmar.

Figure 5: Maximum fire intensity based on NOAA-20 satellite surveillance in Feb 2020.

1.6 In February 2020, hazy conditions were observed on many days in northern, northeastern and central Thailand, northern Cambodia and eastern Myanmar. Slight haziness was detected in northern Myanmar and southern Lao PDR on some days. There were also occasions of transboundary smoke haze when the prevailing winds transported the smoke haze from northern Thailand to northern Lao PDR, and from Cambodia to eastern Thailand.

Figure 6: Number of days with moderate to dense smoke haze observed over an area based on satellite imageries, ground observations and air quality reports in Feb 2020.

Review of Regional Haze Situation for January 2020

1.1 In Jan 2020, Northeast Monsoon conditions prevailed over the ASEAN region. During this period, which is the traditional dry season of the Mekong sub-region, persistent dry weather prevailed. In the southern ASEAN region, there were scattered rain showers on most days but there were also occasional dry periods in some areas, including Peninsular Malaysia, northern and central Sumatra (Fig. 1).

Figure 1: Average Daily Rainfall for Jan 2020. (Source: JAXA GsMaP)

1.2 In Jan 2020, the number of hotspots detected in the Mekong sub-region was higher than the same period in 2019 (Fig. 2).

Figure 2: Hotspot count for the northern ASEAN region for Jan 2013 – 2020. [Note: Hotspot count from year 2019 onward is based on the NOAA-20 satellite, and for the period from year 2013-2018 is based on the Suomi-NPP satellite.]

1.3 In the southern ASEAN region, hotspot activities remained generally subdued (Fig. 3).

Figure 3: Hotspot count for the southern ASEAN region for Jan 2013 – 2020. [Note: Hotspot count from year 2019 onward is based on the NOAA-20 satellite, and for the period from year 2013-2018 is based on the Suomi-NPP satellite.]

1.4 There were persistent hotspots detected in Cambodia, particularly in the northern and western provinces. Clusters of hotspots were also detected in northern, northeastern and central Thailand, eastern Myanmar, and southern parts of Lao PDR and Viet Nam (Fig. 4). In the southern ASEAN region, there were occasional isolated hotspots detected mainly in Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Kalimantan.

Figure 4: Distribution of hotspots detected based on NOAA-20 satellite surveillance for Jan 2020.

1.5 Based on NOAA-20 satellite surveillance, hotspots with moderate to high fire intensity were detected mostly in northern Cambodia, central Thailand, eastern Myanmar, Lao PDR and southern Viet Nam. Some of these hotspots in northern and central Thailand and Cambodia emitted significant smoke haze on a number of days in Jan 2020.

Figure 5: Maximum fire intensity based on NOAA-20 satellite surveillance in Jan 2020.

1.6 Persistent hazy conditions were observed mainly in northern and central Thailand, and Cambodia. In eastern Myanmar, northern Lao PDR and southern Viet Nam, smoke haze was observed on some days. Blown by the prevailing winds, transboundary transport of smoke haze was observed on a few days from northern Thailand to northern Lao PDR, and from Cambodia to eastern Thailand.

Figure 6: Number of days with moderate to dense smoke haze observed over an area based on satellite imageries, ground observations and air quality reports in Jan 2020.