Tropical cyclones « CIMSS Satellite Blog

Hurricane Gert

August 15th, 2017 | Scott Lindstrom

GOES-16 imagery (all 16 ABI Bands) from 1912-2132 UTC, 15 August 2017 [click to play animation]

GOES-16 data posted on this page are preliminary, non-operational and are undergoing testing

Hurricane Gert, a Category-1 storm on the Saffir-Simpson scale, is over the open Atlantic Ocean east of Cape Hatteras. It is close enough to the USA, however, that it is within GOES-16’s CONUS domain where 5-minute sampling is routine. The animation above shows all 16 channels from GOES-16 ABI, every five minutes from 1912-2132 UTC on 15 August 2017. A distinct eye is not apparent in the visible or infrared satellite imagery, but microwave data (from here) suggests an eye is present, at least at times. A comparison of 2035 UTC DMSP-16 SSMIS Microwave (85 GHz) and 2045 UTC GOES-13 Infrared Window (10.7 µm) images can be seen here.

The low-level Water Vapor imagery, below, shows that Gert is south and east of a front along the East Coast. This front should steer the storm to the north and east. Swells from the storm will affect the East Coast however.

GOES-16 imagery Low-Level Water Vapor (7.34 µm) Infrared Imagery from 1832-2137 UTC, 15 August 2017 [click to play animation]

GOES-16 Low-Level Water Vapor (7.34 µm) Infrared Imagery from 1832-2137 UTC, 15 August 2017 [click to play animation]

For more information on Gert, consult the website of the National Hurricane Center, or the CIMSS Tropical Weather Website.

GOES-16 ABI Imagery from the morning on 16 August 2017, below, shows that an eye has appeared in visible and infrared imagery.

GOES-16 imagery (all 16 ABI Bands) from 1117-1337 UTC, 16 August 2017 [click to play animation]

Posted in DMSP, General interpretation, GOES-13, GOES-16, Other Satellites, Tropical cyclones | No Comments »

Tropical Storm Emily forms in the eastern Gulf of Mexico

July 31st, 2017 | Scott Lindstrom

GOES-16 Visible (0.64 µm) Imagery from 1102-1327 UTC on 31 July 2017 (Click to animate)

GOES-16 data posted on this page are preliminary, non-operational and are undergoing testing

Tropical Storm Emily has formed in the eastern Gulf of Mexico on 31 July 2017, just to the west of Tampa/St. Petersburg, Florida. Its presence is possibly related to the surface front that has sagged south into Florida over the weekend. (Sea Surface Temperatures in the area are very warm as well.) In the Visible (0.64 µm) animation above (a slower animation is available here), the curved bands of the low-level cloud field are noticeable just northwest of the large convective cluster near Tampa Bay. Clean Window (10.3 µm) Infrared Imagery shows that offshore convection waned between 1100 and 1300 UTC, shifting to a location just south of Tampa. (Click here for a slower animation)

GOES-16 Clean Window Infrared (10.33 µm) Imagery from 1102-1327 UTC on 31 July 2017 (Click to animate)

About an hour after Emily made landfall, a toggle between Terra MODIS Visible (0.65 µm) and Infrared Window (11.0 µm) images, below, showed the compact cluster of deep convection — cloud-top infrared brightness temperatures were as cold as -74º C just off the Florida coast.

Terra MODIS Visible (0.65 µm) and Infrared Window (11.0 µm) images (Click to enlarge)

For more information on Emily, refer to the National Hurricane Center website, or to the CIMSS Tropical Weather Pages.

Posted in GOES-16, MODIS, Terra, Tropical cyclones | No Comments »

Tropical Storm Don

July 18th, 2017 | Scott Bachmeier

GOES-16 Visible (0.64 µm, top) and Infrared Window (10.3 µm) images [click to play MP4 animation]

* GOES-16 data posted on this page are preliminary, non-operational and are undergoing testing *

On 17 July Tropical Storm Don became the 4th named storm of the 2017 North Atlantic Basin season. The satellite presentation improved somewhat on 18 July, with GOES-16 “Red” Visible (0.64 µm) and “Clean” Infrared Window (10.3 µm) images (above) displaying a few brief convective bursts (some of which exhibited cloud-top infrared brightness temperatures of -80º C and colder).

A GOES-13 (GOES-East) Infrared Window (10.7 µm) image at 1845 UTC with overlays of the Tropical Overshooting Tops and Deep-Layer Winds products from the CIMSS Tropical Cyclones site is shown below.

GOES-13 Infrared Window (10.7 µm) images, with Tropical Overshooting Top and Deep-Layer Wind Shear products [click to enlarge]

Posted in GOES-13, GOES-16, Satellite winds, Tropical cyclones | No Comments »

Hurricane Fernanda

July 17th, 2017 | Scott Bachmeier

GOES-16 Visible [0.64 µm, top) and Infrared Window (10.3 µm, bottom) images [click to play animation]

* GOES-16 data posted on this page are preliminary, non-operational and are undergoing testing *

On 15 July Hurricane Fernanda became the first Category 4 tropical cyclone of the 2017 Northern Hemisphere season. GOES-16 “Red” Visible (0.64 µm) and “Clean” Infrared Window (10.3 µm) images (above) showed the development of a well-defined eye during the period of rapid intensification. As the National Hurricane Center mentioned, it was unusual to have a hurricane of this intensity at such a low latitude in the Eastern North Pacific Basin.

#Fernanda is among strongest hurricanes in the East Pacific at such a low latitude (<12°N). 100 kt at 10.9°N! @UMiamiRSMAS @capitalweather pic.twitter.com/nVJm622tE6

— Brian McNoldy (@BMcNoldy) July 14, 2017

Fernanda fluctuated between Category 3 and Category 4 intensity during the 15-17 July period (ADT | SATCON) as it passed over the warm waters of the East Pacific Ocean (Sea Surface Temperature and Ocean Heat Content) — and trochoidal oscillations in the northwestward motion of the eye could be seen in GOES-16 Infrared Window (10.3 µm) imagery (below).