Satellite Liaison Blog

A strong and extensive upper-level jet brought widespread weather impacts to the United States in mid-December 2019. Water vapor imagery from GOES-West on 12 Dec showed the jet extending from north of Hawaii to the US Rockies (Fig 1). The feature is identified in water vapor imagery by the sharp poleward transition from cooler to warmer brightness temperatures, along with localized fast moving moisture/cloud features. The more significant vorticity maxima/shortwaves are diagnosed in the water vapor imagery as well.

Airmass RGB imagery makes clearer the transition from a warmer/more moist airmass south of the jet (greens) to the cooler/drier airmass to the north (Fig 2). Shades of red near the jet and shortwaves are also apparent, indicating the descent of drier, higher PV air.

By 13 Dec, the jet exit region had dug into the southern US, helping to deepen a trough (Fig 3). The jet exit region, trough and associated deepening surface low would continue east and develop into a nor’easter as it progressed up the east coast. The far southeast US was highlighted in a Slight Risk for Severe by the SPC on the 13th in association with the deepening trough/jet. Further west, the jet core remained over the US Rockies, with GOES-East Derived Winds product indicating speeds as high as 180 knots around 300 mb! The strong jet was driving elevated amounts of pacific moisture into the western US. As a result of the enhanced moisture content and strong orographic forcing, heavy snow was ongoing across much of the Rockies, resulting in numerous winter weather highlights. Across the Colorado Rockies, several feet of snow was forecast to fall by the end of the weekend.

The Airmass RGB product on the 13th continued to depict the contrast between the two airmass poleward across the jet (Fig 4).

The operational Blended TPW product, which blends moisture information from multiple instruments, clearly shows the plume of moisture associated with the pacific jet driving east across the eastern pacific and western US (Fig 5). TPW values were indicated to be well above normal, (200% of normal in many areas; Fig 6). The prolonged period of such anomalously high TPW values lends confidence to significant snow potential over high elevations where orographics are favorable.

Analysis of the Layer PW product shows that the lengthy plume of moisture extended vertically from the surface to the upper levels (Fig 7).

Bill Line, NESDIS

Snow bands accompanied by gusty winds led to localized and brief periods of significantly reduced visibility across upstate New York during the afternoon of 05 Dec 2019. A few of the snowbands advancing south of Syracuse prompted the issuance of Snow Squall Warnings by NWS BGM. Area webcams confirmed the hazardous driving conditions (see tweets here and here). The first warning and radar imagery associated with one of the earlier snow squalls is shown in Fig 1.

The Day Cloud Phase Distinction RGB can be useful in identifying bands of potentially heavier snowfall early in their development, as well as in tracking said bands in time with radar imagery (or in the absence of adequate radar imagery). One-min GOES-16 imagery was available over the region for this event, providing near-real-time satellite information.

GOES-16 Day Cloud Phase Distinction RGB imagery highlighted clouds associated with earlier snow squalls accelerating southeast away from Lake Ontario between Rochester and Syracuse (Fig 2). Most of the scene appears as cyan color, signifying primarily low-level, liquid cloud tops given near equal moderate-high contributions (higher reflectance) from 0.64 um (green) and 1.6 um (blue), with low contribution (relatively warm brightness temperatures) from the IR window (red). The snow squall, however, appears as a localized area of bright green given a lack of contribution from the 1.6 um (blue) component, due to ice at the cloud top, in contrast to the surrounding stratus deck. The region associated with the snow squall also appears to have weak convective elements per the high spatial detail contribution from the 500 m 0.64 um band. While light snow was observed to be falling across areas under the low stratus (cyan areas), the area with obvious glaciation and convective elements had the heaviest observed snowfall and gusty winds, and resulting reduced visibility.

Also plotted in Fig 2 are GOES-16 Derived Motion Wind vectors, capturing a 30-40 knot progression of the squall. These speeds are similar to the observed wind speeds at the surface.

Underlaying the Cloud Top Phase derived product from GOES-16 allows for a cloud top phase determination to be output along with the RGB information, when sampling in AWIPS (Fig 3). In this case, the derived product is indeed indicating ice where we expected based on the RGB interpretation, and supercooled liquid droplets in the cyan zones.

A loop of the Cloud Top Phase product shows the progression of the “ice” area (red), though maybe not the full areal extent as can be diagnosed from the RGB (Fig 4).

Later in the afternoon, another area of apparent significant cloud top glaciation is observed developing over Lake Ontario, expanding as it accelerates southeast and onshore (Fig 5). Subsidence in the immediate vicinity of this weak area of convection is also observed via cloud clearing.

The CTP product again also captures the area of increasing cloud top glaciation (Fig 6).

Bill Line, NESDIS

A mid November Rocky Mountain low pressure system and series of associated disturbances brought rain and snow to parts of the Rockies and adjacent plains 20-22 Nov 2019.

By the morning of 21 Nov, analysis of GOES-16 upper-level water vapor imagery revealed the broad upper low centered over southern Nevada, with a more potent shortwave trough rounding the base of the broad low, lifting northeast across southeast Arizona (Fig 1). An associated jet was also rounding the base of the low with it’s entrance region poking northeast into New Mexico. A separate, localized jet was analyzed across eastern Utah. A cold front associated with the previous day’s shortwave trough was diagnosed in the imagery pushing south across E New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma through the morning. Finally, trailing west-east oriented energy associated with the northern plains shortwave trough is apparent in water vapor imagery slowly sagging south across the northern Rockies/High Plains, marking the transition from moist atmosphere (south) to very dry atmosphere (north).

Of particular interest was the apparent “fanning out” of cold (high-level) clouds over Utah/Colorado/Wyoming in the northeast quadrant of the broad low and interface with the northern energy. Overlaying the upper-level (above 350 mb) GOES-16 Derived Motion Winds (DMWs) in Fig 1, a GOES-R baseline product, this “diffluence” pattern becomes quite obvious in the wind field, with apparent divergence in wind direction and convergence in wind speed northward (>60 knots to <30 knots from south to north across Colorado). Areas of upper level diffluence such as that in this example don’t necessarily represent vertical motion in either direction in the atmosphere below it given competing convergence/divergence aloft considering geostrophic balance. This particular region was experiencing a relative lull in precipitation coverage and intensity during this period between stronger large scale forcing mechanisms. Isolated light to moderate precipitation was still observed over the higher terrain given favorable moisture and orographics, along with possible larger scale lift near the Utah jet steak.

Visible imagery during the morning across the region was quite difficult to interpret given recent snowfall and various cloud layers all presenting similar reflectance.

By combing the 0.64 um, 1.6 um, and 10.3 um bands into the Day Cloud Phase Distinction RGB, we can easily distinguish the bare surface (dark blue), snow (green), low clouds (cyan), and high clouds (red). Widespread low cloud cover is apparent over the high plains in the present of easterly upslope surface flow in the wake of the cold front.

Bill Line, NESDIS

Building off of a previous blog post, a simple RGB can be made that allows for the observation of the hot spot, smoke plume, and burn scar associated with a wildfire. The RGB discussed in this post combines the 3.9 um band (RED) to sense the hot spot, the 0.86 um band (GREEN) to highlight the previously burned area, and the 0.64 um band (BLUE) to track the smoke plume. The hot spot (active wildfire) will appear as red, the smoke plume as faded blue or cyan, clouds a bright cyan, and burned area as a locally dark area. Highly vegetated areas will appear as a bright green, and bodies of water very dark. The recipe used in this example is shown in Figure 1. An animation of this RGB with GOES-17 for the Kincade Fire on 27 Oct is found in Figure 2, and the RGB with the three ingredients is shown as a 4-panel in Figure 3. The active large fire is readily apparent, with the associated burn scar extending north of the ongoing fire. The smoke plume is diagnosed extending well to the southwest of the fire. The heavily forested region of northern California is obvious to the west and northwest of the fire. What appears to be lofted dust is also apparent in this example in the southeast part of the scene.

Bill Line, NWS

A late October trough brought significant weather impacts to portions of the western and central United States. The impressive trough was diagnosed in GOES-East water vapor imagery with features readily apparent (Fig 1). The upper jet extended south across the Pacific Northwest, rounded the base of the trough, and stretched northeast across the Great Basin and into the northern US plains. Exceptional shortwave energy near the base of the trough was digging south across northern California, and an associated cold front was racing south down the southern high plains. An overlay of GOES-16 Derived Motion Winds (DMWs) confirms the speed of the jet in areas where winds are available.

In California, extreme fire danger was observed as high pressure built in the wake of the potent shortwave, resulting in strong easterly surface winds and plummeting RH in the presence of very dry fuels. In northern California, rapid expansion and increase in temperature of the Kincade Fire was observed by GOES-West shortwave IR imagery during the overnight hours of the 26th into the early morning hours of the 27th (Fig 2).

Further east, the precise location of the cold front could be tracked as it pushed south across the high plains, with cold air pooling along the Colorado front range and southeast mountains (Fig 3). An overlay of MSAS 3-hr pressure changes and wind barbs shows an expected increasing pressure behind the IR-detected front, along with a shift of winds to a northerly direction.

With sunrise, the extensive shield of low clouds developing within the cold airmass in the wake of the cold front was observed in GOES-East visible satellite imagery (Fig 4). Pikes Peak and other mountain ranges are seen poking through the low cloud layer. Additionally, a multitude of cloud top gravity was are diagnosed atop the cloud layer.

Bill Line, NWS

A cloud-to-ground lightning strike initiated a wildfire in southeast Colorado during the early evening of 18 October 2019. A progressive shortwave trough moving across Colorado sent a cold front south down the eastern Colorado plains during the afternoon and evening. Lift associated with the trough and cold front, and weak instability aloft, aided the development of showers and weak thunderstorms ahead of and along the frontal boundary. Dry low levels and dry fuels in place across the eastern Colorado plains along with gusty north winds behind the front aided the growth and southward spread of the lightning-initiated wildfire during the evening. Given the expected conditions, a Red Flag Warning for dry lightning was issued the morning of the 18th.

GOES-East water vapor imagery shows the shortwave trough quickly moving east across Colorado on 18 Oct (Fig 1). The associated frontal boundary is also diagnosed in water vapor imagery racing south across the central high plains.

The National Lightning Detection Network (NLDN) detected a negative cloud-to-ground lightning strike over SSE of Lamar at 2315 UTC (Fig 2). Interestingly, neither the GOES-West nor GOES-East GLM detected the flash associated with this particular CG. Shortly after the CG detection, under clearing cloud cover, a hot spot was noted in GOES-East 3.9 um shortwave IR imagery at the location of the CG strike. The fire accelerated south thereafter as north winds picked up behind the front. NWS Pueblo provided spot forecast information to local fire crews working the wildfire overnight.

Overnight, the JPSS NOAA-20 VIIRS Day Night Band detected light associated with the wildfire during the late night hours, along with the scorched earth in its wake to the north (Fig 3).

The next morning, GOES-East visible imagery showed the north-to-south oriented path of scorched earth associated with the wildfire emanating south from the location of the previous day’s lightning strike (Fig 4).

Bill Line, NWS

The Decker Wildfire has been burning just a few miles south of Salida, CO in the far northern Sangre de Cristo wilderness since 8 September 2019. As of 13 October 2019, the fire had burned 8,118 acres and has prompted periodic evacuations and pre-evacuations. On 13 October 2019, the fire had broken containment during critical fire weather conditions. The intensification could be seen in GOES-East 3.9 um SWIR imagery via the flare up in brightness temperature south of Salida around 18Z (Fig 1).

The smoke plume was easily diagnosed in GOES-East visible imagery extending well east of the fire within strong westerly flow (Fig 2). A significant increase in smoke production was observed after 18Z, following the flare up seen in the SWIR imagery.

SNPP VIIRS True Color imagery with VIIRS Active Fires product overlaid during the early afternoon shows numerous thermal anomalies (~750 m spatial resolution) associated with the fire along with the extensive smoke plume (Fig 3).

The IMET tasked to the fire requested that WFO PUB request a mesoscale sector in support of the fire fighting activities. WFO PUB requested another mesoscale sector the following day (10/14) given continued critical fire weather conditions over the fire.

A photo taken around 2300 UTC from between Canon City and Pueblo shows the impressive smoke plume around sunset (Fig 4).

A S-NPP pass during the night of the 13th provided VIIRS Day Night Band imagery over Colorado with favorable illumination. The Decker Fire is readily apparent in the imagery as a cluster of bright light south of Salida in a region that would otherwise be dark.

Bill Line, NWS