|
|
|
|
|
A heat burst was observed at Amarillo, Texas (KAMA) during the overnight hours on 03 June 2002. The surface temperature briefly rose from 77 F (25 C) to 90 F (32 C) at 08:21 UTC (03:21 AM local time), with wind gusts to 55 mph (25 m s-1). NOAA GOES-10 3.9 micrometer shortwave InfraRed (IR) imagery (above, left) shows a region of warm ground (surface brightness temperatures warmer than 20 C, red enhancement) in the wake of the dissipating convection that was moving northeastward across the Texas panhandle. It is interesting to note that this warm ground feature was not detected by the same IR channel on GOES-08 -- the viewing geometry from the eastern satellite was such that clouds blocked the view of this brief heat burst event. Other "hot spots" (red to yellow to brown enhancement) were evident farther to the west, where wildfires were actively burning across parts of Colorado and New Mexico.
Higher resolution AVHRR 3.7 micrometer shortwave IR data from the polar-orbiting NOAA-16 satellite (above, right) shows the areal coverage of the warm heat burst region in better detail. The warm surface brightness temperatures were seen to exist farther to the northwest of Amarillo (KAMA), extending nearly halfway to Dalhart (KDHT).
