GOES-13 0.63 µm visible channel images

McIDAS images of 1-km resolution GOES-13 0.63 µm visible channel data (above) showed the rocket launch plume of the Space Shuttle Endeavour as it ascended from a morning launch from Cape Canaveral on the east coast of Florida on 16 May 2011. The shadow of the rocket plume could also be seen on the patch of low-level clouds that was drifting over the region at launch time.

The hot thermal signature of the shuttle booster rockets could be seen on 4-km resolution GOES-13 3.9 µm shortwave IR imagery (below). The GOES-13 satellite had been placed into Rapid Scan Operations (RSO) mode, providing imagery as frequently as every 5 minutes to monitor conditions leading up to the launch.

GOES-13 3.9 µm shortwave IR images

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GOES-13 0.63 µm visible channel images + surface reports (click image to play animation)

AWIPS images of 1-km resolution GOES-13 0.63 µm visible channel data (above; click image to play animation) showed a convective outflow boundary (originating from strong thunderstorms earlier in the day over northeastern Wisconsin) propagating southward across the eastern portion of the state on 11 May 2011. The leading edge of the outflow boundary moved farther to the south over the nearshore waters of Lake Michigan, where surface friction was less than that over land. Later in the day, clusters of severe thunderstorms were seen to develop over southcentral and southeastern Wisconsin, along an advancing warm frontal boundary.

A 1-km resolution POES AVHRR 10.8 µm “IR window” image (below) at 19:08 UTC (2:08 pm local time) revealed a number of overshooting tops, which exhibited IR brightness temperature values as cold as -70 to -78º C (black to white color enhancement). Overlaid are the numerous SPC reports of hail that had occurred up through 22:06 UTC — hail was as large as 1.75 inches in diameter in Dane County (where observation station Madison KMSN is located), and as large as 4.25 inches (softball-size) just to the east in Jefferson county (where observation station Watertown KRYV is located). A subtle signature of outward-propagating concentric gravity waves could also seen on the IR image of this hail-producing storm, which was especially evident over the northern portion of the cold cloud shield.

CIMSS participation in GOES-R Proving Ground activities includes making a variety of POES AVHRR images and products available for National Weather Service forecasters to add to their AWIPS workstations. A “POES and AVHRR Satellite Products in AWIPS” VISIT training lesson is also available to help users understand the products and their applications to weather analysis and forecasting.

POES AVHRR 10.8 µm IR image + SPC hail reports

A closer look at the aforementioned leading edge of the outflow boundary over the nearshore waters of Lake Michigan is offered using 250-meter resolution MODS true color and false color Red/Green/Blue (RGB) images from the SSEC MODIS Today site (below). Multiple wave fronts can be seen associated with this density current as it moved southward near the Wisconsin/Illinois border region.

MODIS true color and false color Red/Green/Blue (RGB) images

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MIMIC TPW over the eastern Pacific Ocean

Images of MIMIC Total Precipitable Water, above, show moist air emerging from the Intertropical Convergence Zone and streaming north over the western islands of Hawaii.

GOES Imager Water Vapor imagery

GOES-West water vapor imagery (the rocking animation, above) shows the circulation north of the Hawaiian islands that is drawing moisture northward. Because the water vapor channel on the Imager is most accurate at sensing the temperature at the top of the moist layer, however, water vapor imagery can significantly underestimate the amount of water vapor that is in the atmospheric column. The warm temperatures evident over the western Hawaiian Islands (the blue and yellow enhancements) suggest that the water vapor that is emitting radiation sensed by the satellite is warm and confined to lower levels in the atmosphere. Images of Total Precipitable Water give a better indication of how much water vapor is available for precipitation.

Flash flood watches continue through late Tuesday, 10 May, for the western Islands of Hawaii (Oahu, Kauai and Niihau) as the moisture plume continues to drift westward.

The CIMSS MIMIC Total Precipitable Water product is also available for NWS forecast offices to add to their local AWIPS workstations (via Unidata LDM subscription) — a sample animation is shown below. To learn more about the MIMIC TPW product and its applications, a VISIT lesson is also available.

MIMIC Total Precipitable Water product (click image to play animation)

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MODIS 6.5 µm water vapor channel image + surface pressure and surface fronts

An AWIPS image of the MODIS 6.7 µm “water vapor channel” with an overlay of surface pressure and surface fronts (above) showed a large occluded cyclone off the New England coast on 09 May 2011.

McIDAS images of GOES-13 6.5 µm water vapor channel data (below; click image to play animation) displayed the evolution of the classic signature that indicates a cyclone has reached the occluded stage: the formation of a well-defined “dry swirl” that wraps around the center of the circulation.

GOES-13 6.5 µm water vapor channel images (click image to play animation)

A comparison of AWIPS images of the 1-km resolution MODIS water vapor channel image with the corresponding 4-km resolution GOES-13 water vapor channel image (below) demonstrates the advantage of improved spatial resolution for analyzing the complex water vapor gradients as the system was becoming occluded.

MODIS 6.7 µm water vapor image + GOES-13 6.7 µm water vapor image

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