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

Freezing fog in the Carolinas and Virginia

By Scott Bachmeier •

GOES-16 Nighttme Microphysics, Night Fog BTD (10.3-3.9 µm) and Cloud Thickness product [click to play animation | MP4]

GOES-16 Nighttime Microphysics RGB, Night Fog BTD (10.3-3.9 µm) and Cloud Thickness product [click to play animation | MP4]

GOES-16 (GOES-East) Nighttime Microphysics RGB, Night Fog BTD (10.3-3.9 µm) and Cloud Thickness product (above) showed an arc of relatively thin fog across northern South Carolina, eastern North Carolina and southeastern Virginia — which was becoming thicker/deeper in time during the hours leading up to sunrise on 13 January 2021. In areas where the Cloud Thickness increased to 400 meters or more (lighter shades of cyan), freezing fog was observed at nearby METAR sites.

GOES-16 Nighttime Microphysics RGB images with plots of surface observations (below) indicated that air temperatures were near or just below freezing at most sites across the region.

GOES-16 Nighttime Microphysics RGB images, with plots of surface observations [click to play animation | MP4]

GOES-16 Nighttime Microphysics RGB images, with plots of surface observations [click to play animation | MP4]

The band of fog over eastern North Carolina and southeastern Virginia was being pushed eastward by a lower-tropospheric trough, as shown by the NAM40 model 925 hPa wind field at 12 UTC (below).

GOES-16 Nighttime Microphysics RGB image, with a plot of NAM40 model 925 hPa winds at 12 UTC [click to enlarge]

GOES-16 Nighttime Microphysics RGB image, with a plot of NAM40 model 925 hPa winds at 12 UTC [click to enlarge]

After sunrise, GOES-16 “Red” Visible (0.64 µm) images (below) showed that most of the fog quickly dissipated across southeastern Virginia and eastern North Carolina, while thicker fog persisted over much of South Carolina.

GOES-16

GOES-16 “Red” Visible (0.64 µm) images [click to play animation | MP4]

Categories: Fog detection, GOES-16, Red-Green-Blue (RGB) images, Winter weather