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Lake effect cloud plume produces light snow downwind of the Great Salt Lake

By Scott Bachmeier •

5-minute GOES-18 (left) and GOES-19 (right) Nighttime Microphysics RGB + daytime True Color RGB images, from 0401-1556 UTC on 17 April [click to play MP4 animation]

5-minute CONUS Sector GOES-18 (GOES-West) and GOES-19 (GOES-East) Nighttime Microphysics RGB + daytime True Color RGB images from the CSPP GeoSphere site (above) showed a lake effect cloud plume that developed over the southern half of Great Salt Lake on 17 April 2026 — which produced a swath of light snowfall downwind (southeast) of the lake that was apparent in True Color RGB images after sunrise.

Day Snow-Fog RGB images from GOES-18 and GOES-19 created using Geo2Grid (below) were helpful in discriminating between the lake effect clouds (shades of white) and the fresh snow cover (shades of red) immediately downwind of the Great Salt Lake after sunrise. Bare ground appeared as shades of green.

5-minute Day Snow-Fog RGB images from GOES-18 (left) and GOES-19 (right), from 1331-1801 UTC on 17 April [click to play MP4 animation]

A plot of the 24-hour total observed snowfall (below) indicated that amounts were generally 1 inch or less at lower-elevation sites downwind of the Great Salt Lake (with 2 sites near topographical features reporting 3.0 inches).

Plot of 24-hour total observed snowfall ending at 1200 UTC on 17 April [click to enlarge]

Plot of 24-hour total observed snowfall ending at 1200 UTC on 17 April [click to enlarge]

GOES-18 Infrared images (below) depicted cloud-top infrared brightness temperatures within the lake effect cloud plume that were as cold as -35ºC. Note that Salt Lake City International Airport (KSLC) was reporting light snow which reduced the surface visibility to 8 miles at 0454 UTC, as the lake effect cloud was moving over that location.

5-minute GOES-18 Infrared images, from 0401-1201 UTC on 17 April [click to play MP4 animation]

5-minute GOES-18 Infrared images, from 0401-1201 UTC on 17 April [click to play MP4 animation]

According to a plot of 0000 UTC rawinsonde data from Salt Lake City (below), an air temperature of -35ºC occurred at an elevation of 5900 m (19358 ft). Since the water temperature of the lake was around 50ºF or 10ºC that day, the surface temperature of the sounding was modified to match that value.

Plot of rawinsonde data from Salt Lake City at 0000 UTC on 17 April [click to enlarge]

Surface-temperature-modified plot of rawinsonde data from Salt Lake City at 0000 UTC on 17 April [click to enlarge]

Categories: Geo2Grid, GOES-18, GOES-19, Red-Green-Blue (RGB) images, Winter weather