This website works best with a newer web browser such as Chrome, Firefox, Safari or Microsoft Edge. Internet Explorer is not supported by this website.

CIMSS Satellite Blog

MENU

Tropical Depression One-E forms in the East Pacific Ocean

By Scott Bachmeier •

GOES-17 “Red” Visible (0.64 µm) and “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 µm) images [click to play animation | MP4]

GOES-17 “Red” Visible (0.64 µm) and “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 µm) images [click to play animation | MP4]

1-minute Mesoscale Domain Sector GOES-17 (GOES-West) “Red” Visible (0.64 µm) and “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 µm) images (above) showed the circulation of Tropical Invest 90E in the East Pacific Ocean on 24 April 2020. The low-level circulation center appeared to be located about 100 miles southwest of the 18 UTC surface analysis position.

GOES-17 Visible images with a plot of Deep-Layer Wind Shear from the CIMSS Tropical Cyclones site (below) indicated that Invest 90E was embedded within an environment of low shear — the National Hurricane Center gave the feature an 80% chance of further developing into a tropical depression within 48 hours.

GOES-17 “Red” Visible (0.64 µm) with a plot of Deep-Layer Wind Shear at 23 UTC images [click to enlarge]

GOES-17 “Red” Visible (0.64 µm) images, with a plot of Deep-Layer Wind Shear at 23 UTC [click to enlarge]

VIIRS True Color RGB and Infrared Window (11.45 µm) images from NOAA-20 and Suomi NPP as viewed using RealEarth (below) revealed tendrils of transverse banding along the western and northern periphery if the disturbance.

VIIRS True Color RGB and Infrared Window (11.45 µm) images from NOAA-20 and Suomi NPP [click to enlarge]

VIIRS True Color RGB and Infrared Window (11.45 µm) images from NOAA-20 and Suomi NPP [click to enlarge]

===== 25 April Update =====

GOES-17 “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 µm) images [click to play animation | MP4]

GOES-17 “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 µm) images [click to play animation | MP4]

GOES-17 Infrared images (above) showed the period when the disturbance became classified as Tropical Depression One-E at 15 UTC — making this the earliest tropical cyclone on record in the East Pacific basin during the satellite era.

GOES-17 “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 µm) images [click to play animation | MP4]

GOES-17 “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 µm) images [click to play animation | MP4]

GOES-17 Infrared images with plots of tropical surface analyses (above) indicated that TD One-E was situated just north of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). The MIMIC-TPW product (below) showed that the tropical depression was tapping moisture from the ITCZ and drawing it northward.

MIMIC Total Precipitable Water product [click to enlarge]

MIMIC Total Precipitable Water product [click to enlarge]

GOES-17 Visible images (below) revealed an exposed low-level circulation that was displaced north-northwest of the primary cluster of deep convection.

GOES-17 “Red” Visible (0.64 µm) images [click to play animation | MP4]

GOES-17 “Red” Visible (0.64 µm) images [click to play animation | MP4]

Categories: GOES-17, Microwave, NOAA-20, RealEarth, Red-Green-Blue (RGB) images, Satellite winds, Suomi NPP, Tropical cyclones, VIIRS