FORECAST SUMMARY: Saturday, March 15, 2025, through Monday, March 17, 2025
PM-2.5: Saturday morning Fine Particulate concentrations have dramatically increased in SW Michigan into the USG range (AQI Orange) due to high dust transport. We expect this to eventually transition back to mostly Good (AQI Green) to Moderate (AQI Yellow) during Sunday.
FORECAST DISCUSSION
In an unexpected development, strong winds have been pushing high levels of dust up from the southern Plaines states. We have observed monitor readings jump as much as 50 ug/m3, over a short time, at many of our southwest monitors. As a result, we are modifying our forecast to reflect USG in the southwest quadrant of the state, for the remainder of Saturday. The remainder of the state will remain Moderate.
A cold front will move through the region during the early Sunday morning hours. The wind shift from southwest to northwest should put an end to this episode. Concentrations should return to the Good/Moderate levels for Sunday and the remainder of the forecast period. However, since this is a rapidly changing episode, we will continue monitoring and keep the forecast updated if conditions change.
EXTENDED FORECAST:
Air Quality is expected to be Good to Moderate going into the next work week.