GOES-15 6.5 µm water vapor images (click image to play animation)

McIDAS images of GOES-15 6.5 µm water vapor channel data (above; click image to play animation) showed the changing signature of a persistent upper level cut-off low lingering over the north-central US during the 23 September – 27 September 2011 period. As the system lingered over the region, it produced widespread wind gusts in the 30-40 mph range (with a peak wind gust of 46 mph at Green Bay, Wisconsin), and rainfall totals of 4-5 inches at some locations in northern Illinois.

AWIPS images of the hourly GOES sounder Total Column Ozone product on 25 September - 26 September (below; click image to play animation) revealed a distinct elevated ozone signature (300-400 Dobson Units, green to red color enhancement), which indicated that the height of the tropopause was lower in the vicinity of the cut-off low.

GOES sounder Total Column Ozone product (click image to play animation)

One notable impact associated with this cut-off low included thunderstorms along the Lake Michigan shoreline that produced a number of waterspouts that were seen from Milwaukee to Chicago. A comparison of MODIS 0.65 µm visible channel and 11.0 µm IR window channel image at 17:28 UTC (12:28 pm local time) on 24 September (below) showed one of the storms that exhibited cloud top IR brightness temperatures colder than -40ºC (blue color enhancement), along with a number of cloud to ground lightning strikes as it moved inland.

MODIS 0.65 µm visible channel and 11.0 µm IR window channel images

Another impact of this cut-off low included a number of pilot reports of light to moderate turbulence over the central and southern Great Plains region. A well-defined bloom of cirrus clouds developed within a zone of high 400-200 hPa layer wind shear, as seen on 4-km resolution GOES-13 6.5 µm water vapor channel images with overlays of CRAS model fields (below; click image to play animation).

GOES-13 6.5 µm water vapor images + turbulence reports + CRAS layer winds and shear (click image to play animation)

Better detail of the banded structure of the cirrus cloud features within the high-shear deformation zone can be seen on a 1-km resolution MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor image (below). Note the pilot report of light to moderate turbulence during the entire flight from Denver (DEN) to Kansas City (MCI).

MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor image + pilot reports of turbulence

A sequence of 1-km resolution MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor channel images on 26 September (below) showed some very intricate dry air and moisture structures within the cut-off low during that particular day.

MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor channel images

In a comparison of MODIS 0.65 µm visible channel and MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor channel images (below), note how much more structure is seen in the water vapor image — even in areas that are cloud-free in the visible image. This allows a number of water vapor features and gradients to be tracked using 3 consecutive GOES water vapor images, to produce MADIS high-altitude atmospheric motion vectors (AMVs) that can provide important wind direction and wind speed data. An AMV with a wind speed of 130 knots (at 300 hPa) was seen in the dry slot over southern Missouri.

MODIS 0.65 µm visible image + MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor image + MADIS satellite winds

GOES-11 6.7 µm (left) and GOES-15 6.5 µm (right) water vapor channel images (click image to play animation)

McIDAS images of 8-km resolution GOES-11 6.7 µm and 4-km resolution GOES-15 6.5 µm water vapor channel data (above) demonstrated the advantage of improved spatial resolution for the detection of features and gradients in the water vapor imagery associated with a weak upper level low moving eastward across the southwestern US on 14 September 2010. GOES-15 is scheduled to replace GOES-11 as the operational GOES-West satellite in December 2011.

AWIPS images of the GOES-11 sounder Convective Available Potential Energy (CAPE) product (below) showed that the atmosphere was destabilizing in advance of the upper low, with CAPE values in the 1000-2000 J/kg range.

GOES-11 sounder Convective Available Potential Entegy (CAPE)

With the increasing instability and large scale lift ahead of the upper low, areas of thunderstorms developed over parts of Nevada, Arizona, and Utah, as seen on a MODIS 11.0 µm IR image with an overlay of cloud-to-ground lightning strikes (below). About an hour after the time of the MODIS image, one of these storms produced 1.0-inch diameter hail that covered the ground near Munds in northern Arizona (SPC storm reports).

MODIS 11.0 µm IR image + cloud-to-ground lightning strikes

CIMSS participation in GOES-R Proving Ground activities includes making a variety of MODIS and additional GOES Sounder images and products available for National Weather Service offices to add to their local AWIPS workstations. Currently there are 49 NWS offices receiving MODIS imagery and products from CIMSS.

GOES-11 0.65 µm visible and 10.7 µm IR images (click image to play animation)

Strong thunderstorm outflow winds (gusting as high as 69 mph) created a severe dust storm (or “haboob“) in the Phoenix, Arizona area around 02:00 to 03:00 UTC on 06 July 2011 (or 7pm to 8pm local time on 05 July 2011), restricting the surface visibility to near zero with blowing dust and forcing a 45-minute Ground Stop at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport (an interesting YouTube video of the approaching dust storm is available here). The Phoenix National Weather Service forecast office published a summary of the event, and additional information and 3D radar animations are available on the AccuWeather WeatherMatrix blog. A high-resolution GOES image can be found at the NOAA Environmental Visualization Laboratory.

McIDAS images of GOES-11 0.65 µm visible channel data during the day and GOES-11 10.7 µm IR channel data at night (above; click image to play animation) show how the Mesoscale Convective System over Arizona on 05 July evolved into a Mesoscale Convective Vortex (MCV) on the following morning over the deserts of southern California, as the cirrus canopy of the convective system eroded to reveal the mid-level circulation. The MCV then appeared to play a role in helping to initiate new convective activity over California later in the afternoon on 06 July.

AWIPS image comparison from 18:00 UTC on 06 July

MCVs maintain their structure through the release of latent heat associated with condensation when clouds form and especially when precipitation forms. This release of heat alters the stability of the atmosphere, inducing the formation of a cyclonic potential vorticity anomaly. MCVs erode when they encounter high wind shear.

An AWIPS image comparison (above) shows GOES visible channel data (the seam in the middle of the images demarcates data from GOES-11 or GOES-West and GOES-13 or GOES-East; note that the older GOES-11 data is darker because of the age and degradation of that satellite’s visible sensors), GOES 10.7 µm IR channel data, the Blended Total Precipitable Water (TPW) Percent of Normal product, and 850-300 hPa layer wind shear from the GFS and RUC models. In the present example, the MCV exists in an axis of low values of 850-300 hPa wind shear, as noted by model forecasts from the RUC and from the GFS. Abnormally high values of precipitable water are also present, exceeding 200% of normal according to the ‘Blended Product’ that combines observations from the GOES Sounder and ground-based GPS stations. Rawinsonde reports from Phoenix (00 UTC and 12 UTC on 06 July) and from Yuma (12 UTC and 14 UTC on the 06 July) show abundant moisture and relatively low shear. All of these data show environmental conditions that support MCVs.

GOES-11 Sounder TPW and LI derived product images

In the pre-convective environment across southern Arizona on 05 July, GOES-11 Sounder derived product images (above) showed Total Precipitable Water (TPW) values in the 40-50 mm (1.6 to 2.0 inch) range, and Lifted Index (LI) values as low as -5º to -8º C.

MODIS 11.0 µm IR image + negative and positive cloud-to-ground lightning strikes

As the MCS continued to move westward across Arizona, an AWIPS image of 1-km resolution MODIS 11.0 µm IR data at 05:33 UTC (above) showed cloud top IR brightness temperatures as cold as -72º C (black color enhancement), along with numerous negative and positive cloud-to-ground lightning strikes. At that time, the thunderstorm outflow winds were moving through Blythe, California (station identifier KBLH) producing wind gusts of 46 knots (52 mph) with a reduction in visibility to 1.5 miles, and also through Yuma, Arizona (station identifier KNYL) producing wind gusts of 40 knots (46 mph) with a reduction in visibility to 1.25 miles.

GOES-13 0.63 µm visible images (click image to play animation)

The tornado outbreak that affected much of the Southeast US on 27 April 2011 was one of historic proportions, in terms of the number of strong to violent tornadoes produced and the number of resulting fatalities. McIDAS images of 1-km resolution GOES-13 0.63 µm visible channel data (above; click image to play animation; also available as a QuickTime movie) showed the multiple clusters of severe thunderstorms that developed across the region during the day. The GOES-13 satellite had been placed into Rapid Scan Operations (RSO), supplying imagery as frequently as every 5-10 minutes. Zoomed-in versions of GOES-13 RSO 0.63 µm visible images covering the period of the long-track (80 mile) EF-4 Tuscaloosa (KTCL) / Birmingham (KBHM) tornado are available here, which show that the storms exhibited a number of distinct overshooting tops during the time period between 20:40 UTC and 23:25 UTC.

AWIPS images of 4-km resolution GOES-13 10.7 µm IR channel data with overlays of severe weather reports (below; click image to play animation) showed the first round of large storms with cold cloud top IR brightness temperatures (red to black to white color enhancement) that moved through the area during the pre-dawn hours (which produced mainly damaging wind reports), followed by the development later in the afternoon and early evening hours of the stronger storms that produced numerous reports of large hail and strong tornadoes ahead of an advancing cold front (SPC storm reports). Zoomed-in versions of GOES-13 RSO 10.7 µm IR images covering the period of the long-track (80 mile) EF-4 Tuscaloosa (KTCL) / Birmingham (KBHM) tornado are available here — cloud top IR brightness temperature values during the 20:40 UTC to 23:25 UTC time period were as cold as -75º C at 22:25 UTC.

GOES-13 10.7 µm IR images (click image to play animation)

With the higher 1-km spatial resolution of the POES AVHRR IR imagery (below), more detail could be seen in the cloud top IR brightness temperature structure, and much colder cloud top temperatures could be detected in the vicinity of the strongest overshooting tops (as cold as -83º C, violet color enhancement). Other similar 1-km resolution POES AVHRR IR and MODIS IR image examples (with overlays of storm reports) are available at 16:28 UTC, 18:10 UTC, 18:12 UTC, 18:35 UTC, 19:48 UTC, 19:52 UTC, 20:13 UTC, 00:01 UTC, and 03:34 UTC.

POES AVHRR 12.0 µm IR image + SPC storm reports

Although there was widespread cloudiness across much of the Southeast US, hourly GOES-13 Sounder Convective Available Potential Energy (CAPE) derived product images (below) were still able to provide some indication as to the instability of the air mass that was feeding northward into the region that morning.

GOES-13 Sounder CAPE derived product imagery

Another important ingredient was the approach of a strong trough aloft, along with an associated strong mid-level jet streak as seen in a comparison of 1-km resolution MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor imagery and CRAS model 500 millibar (hPa) wind speeds (below).

MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor channel image + CRAS model 500 MB wind speeds

CIMSS participation in GOES-R Proving Ground activities includes making a variety of POES AVHRR, MODIS, and additional GOES Sounder images and products available for National Weather Service offices to add to their local AWIPS workstations. The VISIT training lessons “POES and AVHRR Satellite Products in AWIPS”, “MODIS Products in AWIPS“, and “Water Vapor Imagery and Potential Vorticity Analysis” are available to help users understand these products and their applications to weather analysis and forecasting.

To prepare for the upcoming GOES-R era, new products are being developed and tested at CIMSS using the current generation of satellite data — in fact, some of these new products are now being distributed to and evaluated by a few NWS Offices. Specially-tailored products such as Convective Initiation, Overshooting Tops, and Enhanced-V will allow for the automatic detection of the various developmental stages of convection.

Slide the “Set Fade Level” button located under examples of these images (above) to fade between the CIMSS Convective Initiation (CI) and CIMSS Overshooting Tops (OT) products (derived from satellite observations), along with Cloud-to-Ground (CG) lightning strikes observed from ground-based sensors. Note that there is good agreement between the locations of the satellite-derived CI and OT products and the SPC storm reports for the day (below).

GOES-13 0.63 µm visible images (click image to play animation)

McIDAS images of GOES-13 0.65 µm visible channel data (above; click image to play animation; also available as a QuickTime movie) showed a number of overshooting tops associated with these severe thunderstorms. The corresponding GOES-13 10.7 µm IR images (below; click image to play animation; also available as a QuickTime movie) showed the cold cloud top IR brightness temperatures (as cold as -67º C at 01:33 UTC), as well as a few enhanced-v and cold/warm couplet signatures.

GOES-13 10.7 µm IR images (click image to play animation)

A comparison of a 1-km resolution NOAA-15 AVHRR 10.8 µm IR image with the corresponding 4-km resolution GOES-13 10.7 µm IR image at 21:33 UTC (below) demonstrates the advantage of higher spatial resolution to aid in the detection of enhanced-v and cold/warm thermal couplet storm top signatures, as well as a more accurate depiction of the coldest cloud top IR brightness temperatures associated with the more vigorous overshooting tops (-71º C on the NOAA-15 AVHRR IR image, compared to -58º C on the GOES-13 IR image).

NOAA-15 AVHRR 10.8 µm IR and GOES-13 10.7 µm IR images at 21:33 UTC

An AWIPS GOES-13 0.65 µm visible image at 23:45 UTC (below) was particularly interesting — a few overshooting tops could be seen over central Wisconsin, as well as long shadows being cast upon the hazy boundary layer by a narrow line of developing convection to the southwest. Cloud-to-ground lightning strikes and storm reports (damaging winds, large hail, and tornadoes) are also overlaid on the visible image.

GOES-13 0.63 µm visible image + cloud-to-ground lightning strikes + storm reports

In an effort to try and locate a satellite signature of the damage path of the EF3-rated tornado that moved from Hamburg to Merrill to Gleason in north-central Wisconsin, a comparison of 250-meter resolution MODIS true color images from 10 April (a few hours before the tornado) and 12 April (2 days after the tornado) were used (below). However, the lack of a deep snow cover or dense vegetation in this area made it very difficult to identify the tornado damage path. Note that on 10 April — the day of the tornado outbreak — there still was some light snow cover just to the northwest of the tornado track, with some sites reporting 2-3 inches of snow remaining on the ground that morning.

MODIS true color images on 10 April and 12 April (displayed using Google Earth)

GOES-13 6.5 µm water vapor imagery (click on image to play animation)

AWIPS images of GOES-13 6.5 µm water vapor channel data (above; click image to play an animated GIF; also available as a QuickTime movie) showed the evolution of the “Groundhog Day Blizzard” of 01 February - 02 February 2011. This was a particularly large storm, impacting a swath of the US over 2500 miles long and 700 miles wide with snow, sleet, and ice from New Mexico to Maine — snowfall amounts were as high as 27.0 inches at Antioch, Illinois (HPC storm summary). As the storm developed, the water vapor imagery displayed a very pronounced dry slot, along with an extensive cloud shield.

MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor image

With  higher spatial resolution (1 km) MODIS water vapor imagery, several interesting details could be seen, such as bands of convection in Texas (above) and “lee waves” within the dry slot, downwind of the areas of higher terrain on northern Arkansas and southern Missouri (below).

MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor image

One area that was hit particularly hard with heavy snow and blizzard conditions was northern Illinois (NWS Chicago summary) and southeastern Wisconsin (NWS Milwaukee summary) — in the Chicago area, the 20.1 inches of snow at O’Hare airport and 20.9 inches at Midway airport were the third largest snowfall amounts on record. Thundersnow was reported at a number of locations, where accompanying snowfall rates were several inches per hour; much of the lightning was likely in-cloud and/or cloud-to-cloud, but there were  several cloud-to-ground lightning strikes seen overlaid on GOES-13 10.7 µm IR images  (below; click image to play animation).

GOES-13 10.7 µm IR images + lightning (click image to play animation)

=========== 03 February Update ==========

In the aftermath of the winter storm, a comparison of MODIS true color and false color images from the SSEC MODIS Today site (above) showed extensive snow cover across the Upper Midwest region, along with ice forming in parts of Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, and most of Lake Erie (snow and ice appear as shades of cyan on the MODIS false color image, in contrast to supercooled water droplet clouds which are brighter white features). In fact, some movement of the ice features in the Great Lakes could be seen — especially in Lake Erie –  in a comparison of MODIS false color images from the Terra satellite overpass at 16:03 UTC and the Aqua overpass at 19:23 UTC (below), due to brisk southwesterly surface winds across the region.

MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor image

The third major storm  of the 2010/2011 winter season  (storm #1 | storm #2) impacted much of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast states on 26 January 2011 - 27 January 2011. An AWIPS image  of MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor channel data at 18:28 UTC  (above) revealed a large and complex dry slot, with convective elements developing ahead of the leading edge of the dry slot across Virginia. In addition, to the east of the dry slot over the western Atlantic Ocean a well-defined packet of high altitude “transverse bands” was seen (close-up view) which was forming in the right entrance region of an upper level jet streak.

On a POES AVHRR false-color Red/Green/Blue (RGB) image at that same time (below), high cloud features appeared brighter white, with low clouds taking on a slight yellow tint.

POES AVHRR Red/Green/Blue (RGB) false color image

An animation of GOES-13 10.7 µm IR images (below; click image to play animation) showed the development of the transverse banding cloud structures — the bands were oriented perpendicular to the southwesterly high-altitude wind flow over that region. This transverse banding pattern is a cloud signature that is often associated with areas of turbulence — and in this case there were two pilot reports of moderate turbulence at altitudes of 34,000 feet and 36,000 feet.

GOES-13 10.7 µm IR images (click image to play animation)

A comparison of a GOES-13 10.7 µm IR image with the corresponding MODIS 11.0 µm IR image (below) demonstrated the advantage of higher spatial resolution, with the fine transverse band structure more apparent on the 1-km resolution MODIS image. The coldest IR brightness temperatures within the bands on the MODIS image were -58º C (red color enhancement).

MODIS 11.0 µm IR + GOES-13 10.7 µm IR images

A number of cloud-to-ground lightning strikes were associated with the convective elements that had formed over Virginia (below), ahead of the leading edge of the dry slot that was seen on water vapor imagery. Thundersnow was reported across a wide portion of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast states, with snowfall rates as high as 1-4 inches per hour at some locations.

MODIS 11.0 µm IR image + lightning strikes + METAR surface reports

=========== 27 JANUARY UPDATE ===========

MIMIC Total Precipitable Water product (click image to play animation)

This storm was not particularly intense in terms of a low central pressure or strong winds, but it was able to tap a significant plume of deep moisture (in excess of 30-40 mm or 1.2-1.6 inches) from the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, as can be seen on AWIPS images of the MIMIC Total Precipitable Water (TPW) product (above; click image to play animation) and the Blended Total Precipitable Water product (below; click image to play animation). This contributed to the high snowfall totals at many locations (Weather Underground blog| WeatherMatrix blog).

Blended Total Precipitable Water product (click image to play animation)

Parts of this plume of moisture represented TPW values in excess of 200% of normal (below; click image to play animation).

Percent of Normal TPW product (click image to play animation)

GOES-13 6.5 µm "water vapor channel" images + cloud-to-ground lightning strikes

A major winter storm impacted parts of the Upper Midwest region on 13 November 2010, producing snowfall amounts as high as 14 inches at Emmetsburg, Iowa, 12.0 inches at Maple Grove, Minnesota (NWS MPX story), and 11.0 inches at Hawthorne, Wisconsin (NWS DLH story).

AWIPS images of 4-km resolution GOES-13 6.5 µm “water vapor channel” data (above) revealed a pronounced middle-tropospheric dry slot wrapping into the eastern sector of the storm. Thundersnow was reported at a few locations — note that there were a few cloud-to-ground lightning strikes showing up near the leading edge of the dry slot (over western Iowa after 05:15 UTC, and then over southern Minnesota after 12:15 UTC).

The corresponding 4-km resolution GOES-13 10.7 µm “IR window channel” images (below) showed that the cloud top IR brightness temperatures were not particularly cold across the areas that received the heavy snow (generally in the -30 to -40º C range, dark blue to green color enhancement), though there were bands exhibiting much colder cloud tops (colder than -60º C, red color enhancement) farther to the east within the warm conveyor belt of the storm.

GOES-13 10.7 µm "IR window channel" images + cloud-to-ground lightning strikes

A more detailed view of the storm’s cloud structures could be seen by examining a series of 1-km resolution MODIS 11.0 µm and POES AVHRR 10.8 µm “IR window channel” images (below). An overlay of the 12 UTC HPC-analyzed surface fronts and surface pressure on the 11:16 UTC POES AVHRR IR image showed that the center of the storm system was located over central Iowa at that time.

MODIS 11.0 µm and POES AVHRR 10.8 µm "IR window channel" images

A 1-km resolution MODIS false-color Red/Green/Blue (RGB) image (below) showed the beginning portion of the heavy snow swath, which was stretching from southeastern Nebraska (where as much as 4.0 inches was reported at Gretna) into southwestern Iowa as the main cloud deck associated with the storm system began clear out over that region. In this false-color RGB image (created using the MODIS 0.65 µm “visible channel” image as the Red, and the MODIS 2.1 µm “snow/ice channel” image as the Green and Blue components), the deeper snow cover shows up as the darker red features.

MODIS false-color Red/Green/Blue (RGB) image

========== 15 NOVEMBER UPDATE ==========

There was enough of a break in the clouds on 15 November to get a nice view of the southern portion of the swath of snow cover that stretched from Iowa into southern Minnesota — on the comparison of MODIS false-color RGB images at 17:35 UTC and 19:17 UTC  (below), the snow cover again appears as the darker red feature (in contrast to the brighter supercooled water droplet clouds, and the lighter pink ice crystal clouds).

MODIS false-color Red/Green/Blue (RGB) images

GOES-11 (left), GOES-15 (center), and GOES-13 (right) visible images

Multiple rounds of severe thunderstorms moved northward across southern Arizona on 05 October 2010, producing hail as large as 2.5 inches in diameter, wind gusts as high as 75 mph, and rainfall in excess of 2 inches at some locations (SPC Storm Reports). According to a Phoenix Public Information Statement, the 2.5 inch diameter hail was some of the largest hail ever reported in Arizona.

A 3-panel comparison of visible channel images from GOES-11, GOES-15, and GOES-13 (above; also available as a QuickTime movie) showed the large clusters of convection, some of which moved through the Phoenix area (station identifier PHX). After 18:30 UTC, the GOES-11 satellite was placed into Rapid Scan Operations (RSO) mode, allowing images as frequently as every 5-7 minutes (in contrast to the standard operational 15-minute image interval on GOES-15 and GOES-13).

AWIPS images of the MODIS 0.65 µm visible channel and 11.0 µm IR Window channel (below) showed a closer view of the storms at 21:01 UTC (3:01 pm local time). MODIS cloud top IR brightness temperatures were as cold as -61º C (darker red color enhancement). Cloud-to-ground lightning strikes, severe reports of hail and wind, and surface METAR reports are also overlaid on the MODIS images.

MODIS 0.65 µm visible and 11.0 µm IR Window images

An AWIPS image of the POES AVHRR Cloud Top Temperature (CTT) product (below) displayed a minimum CTT value of -63º C just southeast of Chandler/Williams Air Force Base (station identifier KIWA) at 21:23 UTC (3:23 pm local time).

POES AVHRR Cloud Top Temperature product

MODIS 3.7 µm shortwave IR, 11.0 µm IR, and Land Surface Temperature product

As noted on the AccuWeather WeatherMatrix blog, some locations in far eastern Colorado and far western Kansas experienced a “heat burst” as dry convection passed across the region overnight. AWIPS images of the 04:35 UTC (10:35 pm local time) MODIS 3.7 µm shortwave IR, MODIS 11.0 µm IR, and MODIS Land Surface Temperature (LST) product (above) revealed the isolated pocket of warm temperatures (darker orange color enhancement: as high as 24º C / 75.2º F on the shortwave IR image, 21.5º C / 70.7º F on the IR image, and 25.4º C / 78.7º F on the LST product) just northwest of Burlington, Colorado (station identifier KITR), in the wake of the passing convection (which exhibited cloud top IR brightness temperatures as cold as -36º C, darker blue color enhancement). Around the time of the MODIS images, the surface air temperature at Burlington had abruptly risen to 89º F / 32º C with wind gusts to 53 knots (61 mph).

A comparison of the 1-km resolution MODIS 11.0 µm IR image with the corresponding 4-km resolution GOES-13 10.7 µm R image (below) demonstrated the dramatic improvement in feature detection with higher spatial resolution. Parallax error associated with the high viewing angle of the geostationary GOES-13 satellite was also obvious in the image comparison.

MODIS 11.0 µm IR and GOES-13 10.7 µm IR images

An animation of the GOES-13 10.7 µm IR images (below) showed the warm heat burst signature (the pocket of darker orange colors) migrating eastward into western Kansas, where the surface air temperature at Goodland (station identifier KGLD) later rose to 92º F / 33º C at 06:00 UTC (Midnight local time). Note that there no cloud-to-ground lightning strikes associated with the convection that produced the heat burst.

GOES-13 10.7 µm IR images

The heat burst signature was even evident on the 10-km resolution GOES-13 sounder Skin Temperature derived product image (below), with a maximum skin temperature value of 21.5º C / 70.7º F just to the northwest of Burlington, Colorado at 05:00 UTC (11:00 pm local time).

GOES-13 sounder Skin Temperature derived product image

Another example of a heat burst signature on satellite imagery can be seen in this case at Amarillo, Texas in June 2002.