FORECAST SUMMARY: Monday, July 20, 2026 - Wednesday, July 22, 2026
Air Quality Alert for Monday, July 20, 2026
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) has issued an Air Quality Alert for July 20, 2026, for elevated levels of fine particulate due to wildfire smoke.
This is a Statewide Air Quality Alert
PM-2.5: Concentrations on Monday will be mostly in the Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (USG – Orange AQI). Continued improvement is expected Tuesday and Wednesday with averages in the Moderate (Yellow AQI) range.
Ozone: 8-hour average Ozone concentrations in the Good (Green AQI) to Moderate (Yellow AQI) range will continue.
FORECAST DISCUSSION:
Sunday was another day with wildfire smoke across the region. While levels were not as high last week, daily 24-averages ranged from Very Unhealthy (purple AQI) to Unhealthy (Red AQI) across the upper peninsula to mostly USG (orange AQI) across the lower peninsula.
Daily averages ranged from 135 ug/m3 in Marquette to 33 ug/m3 in Flint and Port Huron. Maximum hourly concentrations ranged from 200 ug/m3 at the Seney monitor to 44 ug/m3 at the Tecumseh monitor.
On Monday, PM2.5 concentrations are lingering in the Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (USG) range across much of the state. Levels are expected to remain in this range through most of the day, so the Air Quality Alert will continue through Monday. As a weather system moves through, improvements are expected, and by Tuesday, PM2.5 concentrations should fall into the Moderate range. Looking ahead, forecast guidance suggests that light smoke may drift into the region on the cool northwest flow behind Monday’s system. At this time, we do not expect more than an hour or two of USG level hourly readings in the western upper peninsula.
High pressure will settle over the region on Wednesday and Thursday, bringing dry conditions and gradually warming temperatures as the week progresses. Under this warmer, dry setup, there is potential for increased smoke formation, so we will issue another forecast update on Wednesday to refine expectations for smoke for the rest of the week.
Despite the dry pattern, cooler surface and upper‑level temperatures should help keep ozone levels from rising above the Moderate range through mid‑week.
EXTENDED FORECAST:
Air quality in the Moderate range may persist in the extended period.
Next Forecast update: Wednesday, July 22, 2026