The normal operational GOES scan schedule provides one full disk image every 3 hours — but as part of the GOES-15 NOAA Science Test, the GOES-15 satellite was placed into a mode which allowed one full disk image to be scanned every 30 minutes. McIDAS images of GOES-15 6.5 µm “water vapor channel”... Read More

An isolated thunderstorm over southwestern Arizona during the afternoon hours on 17 August 2010 was responsible for a report of surface winds of 79 knots (91 mph) along with 0.80 inch of rain in 45 minutes near Ajo (SPC storm reports). McIDAS images of 1-km resolution GOES-15 0.63 µm visible channel data (above) showed... Read More

Unusually hot and dry mid-August conditions beneath a strong ridge of high pressure across British Columbia led to a major outbreak of wildfires across that western Canadian province — 1-km resolution GOES-15 0.63 µm visible channel images (above) showed the development of a number of large and very dense smoke... Read More

A weak, isolated tornado developed in southwestern Minnesota during the afternoon of 11 August 2010. GOES-15 imagery, above, shows the development of modest cumulus convection that spawned the tornado. The 5-minute time-step in the imagery is similar to that that will be available routinely from the ABI on GOES-R; the loop was taken... Read More