* GOES-17 images shown here are preliminary and non-operational *

GOES-17 Low-level (7.3 µm), Mid-level (6.9 µm) and Upper-level (6.2 µm) Water Vapor images (above) revealed the diurnal cycle of warming and cooling of the summits of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa on the Big Island of Hawai’i on 21 November 2018. There was even a subtle warming signature of the higher terrain of Maui on 7.3 µm and 6.9 µm imagery. This example helps to underscore the fact that Water Vapor bands are Infrared bands, which — in the absence of clouds — essentially sense the mean temperature of a layer (or layers) of moisture within the troposphere.

The presence of very dry air within the middle/upper troposphere over Hawai’i on 21 November had the effect of shifting the water vapor weighting functions to lower altitudes, as seen on plots for the 3 ABI Water Vapor bands calculated using 00 UTC rawinsonde data from Hilo PHTO (below). This allowed thermal radiation from the higher terrain to pass upward (un-attenuated) through what little high-altitude moisture was present and reach the 7.3 µm / 6.9 µm / 6.2 µm detectors on GOES-17.

Compare the altitudes and depths of Hilo water vapor weighting function plots on 19 November vs. 22 November (below). Increased moisture within the middle troposphere on 19 November shifted the water vapor weighting function plots for the 7.3 µm and 6.9 µm bands to higher altitudes (and increased the magnitude of the high-altitude contributions for the 6.9 µm and 6.2 µm bands).

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After increasingly colder air began moving from eastern Nunavut across Hudson Bay beginning on 06 November (surface analyses), the daily sea ice concentration as derived from GCOM-W1 AMSR2 data (source) began to increase in the northern half of Hudson Bay (above) — especially after 15 November once mid-day (18 UTC) temperatures colder than -20ºF were seen at reporting stations along the northwest coast.

A sequence of daily Terra/Aqua MODIS True Color Red-Green-Blue (RGB) images (source) showed signatures of the increasing of ice coverage.

A toggle between Terra MODIS True Color and False Color RGB images on 21 November (below) confirmed that much of the northern half of Hudson Bay contained ice — snow/ice (as well as ice crystal clouds) appear as darker shades of red in the False Color image (in contrast to the cyan shades of supercooled water droplet clouds).

19 November maps of Ice Concentration, Ice Stage and Departure from Normal via the Canadian Ice Service (below) further characterized this ice formation, which was ahead of normal for the central portion of Hudson Bay.

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* GOES-17 images shown here are preliminary and non-operational *

GOES-17 Low-level (7.3 µm), Mid-level (6.9 µm) and Upper-level (6.2 µm) Water Vapor images (above) showed the circulation associated with an occluded gale-force low in the Gulf of Alaska (surface analyses) which moved northward to a position just south of the Kenai Peninsula on 19 November 2018.

The 3 GOES-17 ABI Water Vapor bands sample radiation from different layers within the troposphere — the height and depth of these individual layers varies with changes in (1) the temperature/moisture profile of the atmosphere and (2) the satellite viewing angle (or zenith angle). The 3 water vapor weighting functions — calculated using 12 UTC rawinsonde data from Anchorage (PANC) — provide information on the height and depth of the radiating layers in the vicinity of the storm  (below).

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Following several days of unrest, there was a moderate eruption of Volcán de Fuego in Guatemala beginning around 0630 UTC on 19 November 2018. GOES-16 (GOES-East) Upper-level (6.2 µm), Mid-level (6.9 µm) and Low-level (7.3 µm) Water Vapor images (above) displayed a signature of the volcanic plume, which drifted slowly northward and eastward for several hours. Since the 7.3 µm spectral band is also affected by SO2 absorption, the longer-lasting signal in the Low-level Water Vapor imagery suggests the plume contained SO2 as well as ash (since the 7.3 µm band is also sensitive to SO2 absorption).

A GOES-16 multiispectral Ash/Dust Cloud Height product from the NOAA/CIMSS Volcanic Cloud Monitoring site (below) indicated that the ash reached a maximum height of 7-8 km in the general vicinity of the summit between 1100-1200 UTC. A low-altitude plume of ash was seen drifting westward at heights of 1-5 km.

Along the southern coast of Guatemala, a 1400 UTC METAR from San Jose (MGSJ) reported a surface visibility of 5 statute miles with Volcanic Ash in the vicinity (VCVA) as the current weather type (below). At that time, the GOES-16 Split Window (10.3-12.3 µm) Brightness Temperature Difference was highlighting  concentrations of middle-tropospheric volcanic ash (yellow enhancement) farther inland closer to the volcano.

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