1-minute Mesoscale Domain Sector GOES-17 (GOES-West) “Red” Visible (0.64 µm), Shortwave Infrared (3.9 µm) and “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 µm) images (above) showed the formation of a pyrocumulonimbus (pyroCb) cloud that was spawned by the Castle Fire in California on 23 August 2020.The coldest pyroCb cloud-top infrared brightness temperatures were around -50ºC –according to 00 UTC rawinsonde data from Las Vegas, Nevada (below)... Read More

A comparison of Suomi NPP VIIRS Day/Night Band (0.7 µm) and Near-Infrared (1.61 µm and 2.25 µm) images along with the VIIRS Active Fires product (above) showed nighttime visible reflectance and thermal signatures of the numerous wildfires that were burning across Northern California at 1001 UTC or 3:01am PDT on... Read More

 GOES-16 (GOES-East) “Red” Visible (0.64 µm), Shortwave Infrared (3.9 µm) and “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 µm) images (above) showed 2 pulses of pyro-convection emanating from the Williams Fork Fire that was burning between between Kremmling (K20V) and Berthoud Pass (K0CO) in Colorado on 14 August 2020. The cloud of the second pulse, originating around 2300 UTC, exhibited... Read More

On 13 August 2020, Visible images from GOES-17 (GOES-West, positioned at 137.2ºW), GOES-15 (GOES-West backup, positioned at 128ºW), GOES-14 (on-orbit spare, positioned at 104.5ºW) and GOES-16 (GOES-East, positioned at 75.2ºW) (above) showed the morning dispersion of smoke from the Red Salmon Complex that had been burning in northern California. The images are displayed in the... Read More